Antioxidant and cytotoxic activities of silver nanoparticles synthesized using Tilia cordata flowers extract

In the past several years, the interest in synthesizing nanoparticles from plant extract has been increasing due to easy, low cost and being clean. In this study, Tilia cordata flower (Tcf) extract was used as bioreduction of silver nitrate to form silver nanoparticles (AgNPs). Visual formation of nanoparticles was confirmed by a color change from light yellow to brown. The structural properties and morphology of Tcf-AgNPs were confirmed by Ultraviolet-visible (UV-vis), Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR), Scanning electron microscope with Energy dispersive X-ray (SEM/EDX), High resolution transmission electron microscope (HR-TEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) spectroscopic techniques. The antioxidant capacity of AgNPs was investigated in vitro by ferric reducing antioxidant power (FRAP), 1,1-diphenyl-2-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) and 2,2'-azino-bis(3-ethylbenzothiazolibe-6-sulphonic acid) ABTS assays. DPPH activities were found as good as standard, BHT with the values of 9.40 (IC50, mu g/mL) and 9.67 (IC50, mu g/mL) respectively. The anti-tumor effect of Tcf-AgNPs was determined by MTT assays and the results indicate that Tcf-AgNPs have cytotoxic activities in a cell line and dose-dependent manner.

Automated summary

This study successfully synthesized silver nanoparticles using Tilia cordata flower extract, which showed good antioxidant capacity and anti-tumor effects, indicating potential biomedical applications.