Photocatalytic and Biological Attributes of Green Synthesized Nickel Oxide Nanoparticles by Rheum Turkestanicum (RT) Root Extract

The aim of this study was to synthesize nickel oxide nanoparticle (NiO-NPs) by Rheum turkestanicum (RT) root extract, which is a local medicinal plant. The synthesized NiO-NPs have been characterized by field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX), fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) methods. We have evaluated the cytotoxicity of NiO-NPs on the WEHI 164 murine fibrosarcoma cells by MTT assay. The photocatalytic properties of NiO-NPs was investigated by observing the removal of Rhodamine-B (RB) in aqueous media. It has been displayed by the obtained results that NiO-NPs have been synthesized in a Hexagonal (Rhombohedral) lattice system with the size of about 12-15 nm. According to the results, almost 95% of RB has apparently degraded in the presence of NiO-NPs under UV-light after 30 h. It has been illustrated by the cytotoxicity effects against the WEHI 164 murine fibrosarcoma cells that 250 mu g/ml of NiO-NPs is capable of eliminating about 70% of these tumors' cells. The IC50 of the NiO-NPs has been calculated to be 25 mu g/ml. The introduced green method can replace the available chemical procedures, which involve using hazardous substances that are a threat to the human health.