Green sol–gel synthesis of hydroxyapatite nanoparticles using lemon extract as capping agent and investigation of its anticancer activity against human cancer cell lines (T98, and SHSY5)

Nanotechnology and biomedical sciences open the door to a wide range of biological research topics and medical applications at the molecular and cellular levels. Biosynthesis of nanoparticles has been proposed as a cost-effective and environmentally friendly alternative to chemical and physical methods. Plant-mediated synthesis of nanoparticles is a green chemistry approach that connects nanotechnology with plants. Novel methods of ideally synthesizing NPs are thus proposed that are formed at ambient temperatures, neutral pH, low costs and in an environmentally friendly fashion. The goal of the current study is to examine the cytotoxic activity of hydroxyapatite nanoparticles in various kinds of human cancer cells and potential mechanisms at play. Hydroxyapatite nanoparticles were created by the sol–gel method using lemon extract as a capping and reducing agent to achieve environmentally friendly synthesis. The synthesized nanoparticles were characterized by XRD, SEM, FTIR, TGA, VSM and HRTEM. They were tested for cytotoxicity against T98 and SH-SY5Y, two human cancer cell lines. The synthesized nanostructures significantly caused in vitro cell death in cancer cells. The results confirmed that synthesized nanoparticles significantly decreased the percentage of cells that survived. Nevertheless, it is essential to perform more investigations to find out the exact mechanisms involved. Binding energy of Hydroxyapatite- SH-S5YS complex and Hydroxyapatite- T98 complex calculated by molecular docking. However, it is essential to perform more investigations to find the underlying mechanisms.