Efficient biosynthesis of CuO nanoparticles with potential cytotoxic activity

Biogenic CuO nanoparticles (CuO-NPs) were greenly synthesized utilizing two precursors of waste plant extracts, namely pomegranate peel [PP] and date stones [DS], to enhance its cytotoxic activity. The biogenic CuO-NPs produced from pomegranate peel extract [PP-CuO-NPs] have been found in an excessively small nanosized structures [~ 6 nm] compared to that prepared from the date stones extract [~ 20 nm] D-CuO-NPs. The two products [PP-CuO-NPs and D-CuO-NPs] obtained were fully characterized. The agglomeration and crystal formation of biogenic CuO-NPs were investigated by transmission electron microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and X-ray diffraction analysis. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and thermogravimetric analysis–derivative thermogravimetric analysis were utilized to determine the existence of working groups absorbed on the biogenic CuO-NPs surface, while the dispersion stability of CuO-NPs was assessed through zeta potential test. The validity of the biogenic CuO-NPs as cytotoxic agent was applied against human breast cancer [MCF7] cell lines and compared with the normal BJ1 cell line. The results demonstrated a discriminative inhibition of cancer cell growth of MCF7, particularly by using PP-CuO, decreasing to nearly 0.0%.