Biosynthesis, characterization, and application of Cu2O nanoparticles originated from Cressa leaf extract as an efficient green catalyst in the synthesis of some chromenes

Cu2O as a new heterogeneous green nanocatalyst is biosynthesized from Cressa leaf extract and characterized by some techniques including XRD, FTIR, UV-Vis, SEM, and TEM. Then, the prepared nanocatalyst was applied in the synthesis of some chromeno[4,3-b]chromenes under aerobic conditions. Reusability studies warrant acceptable reproducibility of the nanomaterial. Low reaction time, easy workup, cost-effectiveness, wide substrate scope, good to excellent yield, and complete atom economy are significant features of this new method. At the final part of this study, the in vitro cellular toxicity of Cu2O nanoparticles is examined on SKOV3 human ovarian carcinoma cell line via an MTT assay. The reduction in cell viability proved the cytotoxicity of the nanoparticles toward the performed ovarian cancer cell line.

Automated summary

Cu2O as a new heterogeneous green nanocatalyst synthesized from Cressa leaf extract shows significant advantages in the synthesis of chromeno[4,3-b]chromenes. Furthermore, the study demonstrates the cytotoxicity of Cu2O nanoparticles towards SKOV3 human ovarian carcinoma cell line.