Exploring non-cytotoxic, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory properties of selenium nanoparticles synthesized from Gymnema sylvestre and Cinnamon cassia extracts for herbal nanomedicine

Sumairan Bi Bi; Iqra Elahi; Nimra Sardar; Omer Ghaffar; Habib Ali; Roua A Alsubki; Muhammad Sarfaraz Iqbal; Kotb A Attia; Asmaa M Abushady

doi:10.1016/j.micpath.2024.106670

Exploring non-cytotoxic, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory properties of selenium nanoparticles synthesized from Gymnema sylvestre and Cinnamon cassia extracts for herbal nanomedicine

Microb Pathog. 2024 May 9:192:106670. doi: 10.1016/j.micpath.2024.106670. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Sumairan Bi Bi¹, Iqra Elahi², Nimra Sardar³, Omer Ghaffar⁴, Habib Ali⁵, Roua A Alsubki⁶, Muhammad Sarfaraz Iqbal⁷, Kotb A Attia⁸, Asmaa M Abushady⁹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Biological Sciences, Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad, Pakistan. Electronic address: bibisumairan02@gmail.com.
² Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Biological Sciences, Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad, Pakistan. Electronic address: iqraelahi21@gmail.com.
³ Department of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics, School of Applied Sciences, University of Okara, Okara, Pakistan. Electronic address: nimra97sardar@gmail.com.
⁴ Department of Biotechnology, School of Natural and Applied Sciences, Niğde Ömer Halisdemir University, Turkey. Electronic address: omerghaffar932@gmail.com.
⁵ Department of Agricultural Engineering, Khwaja Fareed University of Engineering and Information Technology, Rahim Yar Khan, 64200, Pakistan. Electronic address: habib_ali1417@yahoo.com.
⁶ Department of Clinical Laboratory Science, College of Applied Medical Sciences, King Saud University, 2455, Riyadh, 11451, Saudi Arabia. Electronic address: ralsubki@ksu.edu.sa.
⁷ Department of Urology, Minimally Invasive Surgery Center, Guangdong Key Laboratory of Urology, Guangzhou Urology Research Institute, The First Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, China. Electronic address: sarfaraz2250@gmail.com.
⁸ Department of Biochemistry, College of Science, King Saud University, P.O. Box 2455, Riyadh, 11451, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. Electronic address: kattia1.c@ksu.edu.sa.
⁹ Biotechnology School, 26Th of July Corridor, Nile University, Sheikh Zayed City, Giza, 12588, Egypt; Department of Genetics, Agriculture College, Ain Shams University, Cairo, Egypt. Electronic address: aabushady@nu.edu.eg.

PMID: 38734323
DOI: 10.1016/j.micpath.2024.106670

Abstract

The increasing need for pharmaceutical agents that possess attributes such as safety, cost-effectiveness, environmental sustainability, and absence of side effects has driven the advancement of nanomedicine research, which lies at the convergence of nanotechnology and medicine.

Aims and objectives: The study aimed to synthesize non-toxic selenium nanoparticles (SeNPs) using Gymnema sylvestre (G. sylvestre) and Cinnamon cassia (C. cassia) extracts. It also sought to develop and evaluate versatile nanomedicine formulations i.e. selenium nanoparticles of G. sylvestre and C. cassia (SeNPs), drug (lupeol) loaded SeNPs (DLSeNPs), drug-loaded and coated (PEG) SeNPs (DLCSeNPs) without side effects.

Methods: The SeNPs formulations were hydrothermally synthesized, loaded with lupeol to improve efficacy, coated with polyethylene glycol (PEG) for targeted delivery, and characterized using UV-Vis spectrophotometry, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), zeta potential analysis, size distribution analysis, and X-ray diffraction (XRD). Hemolytic cytotoxicity, 2,2-Diphenyl-1-picrylhydzayl (DPPH), total Reducing power, and total antioxidant capacity (TAC) antioxidant assays, carrageenan-induced paw edema, and histological studies were used to estimate the acute anti-inflammatory activity of the synthesized SeNPs.

Results: The final form of PEGylated and drug (lupeol)-loaded selenium nanoparticles (DLCSeNPs) exhibited an average particle size ranging from 100 to 500 nm as evidenced by SEM, and Zeta potential results. These nanoparticles demonstrated no cytotoxic effects and displayed remarkable antioxidant (IC50 values 19.29) and anti-inflammatory capabilities. These results were fed into Graph-pad Prism 5 software and analyzed by one-way ANOVA, followed by Tukey's post hoc test (p < 0.001). All nano-formulations exhibited significant overall antioxidant activity, with IC50 values ≤ 386 (p < 0.05) as analyzed by ANOVA. The study's results suggest that G. sylvestre outperformed C. cassia in terms of reducing 2,2-diphenyl-1-picryl-hydrazyl-hydrate (DPPH) free radical, potassium ferricyanide, and ammonium molybdate in respective antioxidant assays. As far as anti-inflammatory activities are concerned drug (lupeol)-loaded and PEG-coated G. sylvestre SeNPs exhibited the highest anti-inflammatory potential from all other nano-formulations including drug (lupeol)-loaded and PEG-coated C. cassia SeNPs, as exhibited to reduce the release of pro-inflammatory signals i.e. cytokines and NF-kB, making them innovative anti-inflammatory nanomedicine.

Conclusion: The study synthesized lupeol-loaded and PEG-coated SeNPs, showcasing the potential for biocompatible, cost-effective anti-inflammatory nanomedicines. G. Sylvester's superior antioxidant and anti-inflammatory performance than Cinnamon cassia emphasizes medicinal plant versatility.

Keywords: Anti-Inflammatory agents; Antioxidant potential; Cinnamon cassia; Green synthesis; Gymnema sylvestre; PEGylated nano-carriers; Selenium nanoparticles; Targeted drug delivery.