Green synthesis of silver nanoparticles using Nothapodytes foetida leaf extract: Optical, antibacterial and anticancer activities

Abstract

This study represents the green synthesis of silver nanoparticles using Nothapodytes foetida leaf extract (Nf-AgNPs) and investigates the optical, antibacterial and anti-cancer activities. The plant extract acts both as reducing agent as well as capping agent. The synthesized Nf-AgNPs were characterized by UV-Visible spectroscopy (UV-Vis), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), Powder X-ray diffraction (XRD), Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Energy dispersive X-ray analysis (EDX) and Photoluminescence (PL) techniques. The Nf-AgNPs exhibited maximum absorbance at 430 nm in UV–vis spectrum. The XRD analysis of Nf-AgNPs indicated the particles are a face-centered cubic (fcc) structure with an average crystallite size of 40.73 nm. FTIR analysis of Nf-AgNPs identified different functional groups. Photoluminescence (PL) spectra of Nf-AgNPs exhibited emission peak at 451 nm, when it excited at 330 nm. The Nf-AgNPs confirmed significant anticancer activity towards cancerous cells. The in vitro anticancer activity of Nf-AgNPs nanoparticles against the A549 and HepG2 cells showed the IC₅₀ value of 69.2 and 41.3 μg/mL, respectively. In addition, antibacterial activity was done by agar well diffusion method and Nf-AgNPs showed a greater ability to inhibit Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria compared to other treatments tested. These results confirm that Nf-AgNPs can serve as antibacterial and anticancer agents for biomedical applications.