MICROCYSTIN-BASED NANO DRUG FROM ANABAENA CYLINDRICA FOR TREATMENT OF HEPATOCELLULAR CARCINOMA

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is liver cancer characterized by high prevalence and low survival rate. Hence, there is an urgent need to screen resources to develop therapeutic drugs to treat patients suffering from HCC. In this context, the current study involves developing a microcystin conjugated nano-drug from cyan bacteria Anabaena cylindrica to target the tumor liver cells. The microcystin molecules in the aqueous algal extract were quantified by High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and used as reducing and capping agents at a concentration below the toxic limit to synthesize silver nanoparticles. These nanoparticles were characterized by Nanoparticle Tracking analysis (NTA), Fourier Transform Infra-red (FTIR), Transmission emission microscopy (TEM), and their anti-tumor activity was evaluated on HepG2 cell line by MTT assay. The highest nanoparticle synthesis was obtained at pH 8.5 after 120 min of incubation. NTA and TEM analysis showed mean particle size of 30nm. FTIR spectrum confirmed the presence of functional groups related to proteins conjugated to silver nanoparticles. The nanoparticle formulation exhibited enhanced to toxic activity in HepG2 cell line compared to the extract and a standard drug. The present investigation is significant as it demonstrates a green method of synthesis of nano-drug from a biological source with potent therapeutic activity against HCC.