Silver Nanoparticles Derived by Artemisia arborescens Reveal Anticancer and Apoptosis-Inducing Effects

Abstract

The fight against cancer is one of the main challenges for medical research. Recently, nanotechnology has made significant progress, providing possibilities for developing innovative nanomaterials to overcome the common limitations of current therapies. In this context, silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) represent a promising nano-tool able to offer interesting applications for cancer research. Following this path, we combined the silver proprieties with Artemisia arborescens characteristics, producing novel nanoparticles called Artemisia–AgNPs. A “green” synthesis method was performed to produce Artemisia–AgNPs, using Artemisia arborescens extracts. This kind of photosynthesis is an eco-friendly, inexpensive, and fast approach. Moreover, the bioorganic molecules of plant extracts improved the biocompatibility and efficacy of Artemisia–AgNPs. The Artemisia–AgNPs were fully characterized and tested to compare their effects on various cancer cell lines, in particular HeLa and MCF-7. Artemisia–AgNPs treatment showed dose-dependent growth inhibition of cancer cells. Moreover, we evaluated their impact on the cell cycle, observing a G1 arrest mediated by Artemisia–AgNPs treatment. Using a clonogenic assay after treatment, we observed a complete lack of cell colonies, which demonstrated cell reproducibility death. To have a broader overview on gene expression impact, we performed RNA-sequencing, which demonstrated the potential of Artemisia–AgNPs as a suitable candidate tool in cancer research.