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Green synthesis of zinc oxide nanoparticles using the root hair extract of Phoenix dactylifera: antimicrobial and anticancer activity

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Abstract

Zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO NPs) were produced using the root hair extract of Phoenix dactylifera, and characterized by UV–Vis absorbance spectrophotometer, X-ray diffraction, particle size analyzer, and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy. Their antimicrobial activity and anticancer cytotoxicity were studied. An optimal nano-size range of 30.87–47.89 nm was obtained using 0.6 M of dihydrating zinc acetate salt and the root hair extract in a ratio of 1:2, respectively. ZnO NPs were observed to be around 45% more cytotoxic than doxorubicin (DOX) alone. Particularly, triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) cells were observed to be more vulnerable to ZnO NPs than DOX alone which significantly reduced the viability of cancer cells to 9.01%. In addition, ZnO NPs were noticed to be 82.26% cytotoxic to lung cancer cells (A549). While testing ZnO powder did not cause any cytotoxicity on cancerous cells. Moreover, ZnO NPs showed promising antibacterial activity against different pathogenic organisms including Klebsiella pneumonia, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Escherichia coli, Salmonella, and Staphylococcus aureus. Their activity was higher than the penicillin, gentamycin, and tetracycline based on the microbial inhibition zone. Generally, ZnO NPs demonstrate great potential for the chemotherapy of breast and lung cancer cells and bacterial infection.

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Acknowledgement

The authors thank Al-Ahliyya Amman University for the financial support. This research was funded by the Deanship of Graduate Studies at AL-Ahliyya Amman University through its council number 14/6/2019-2020.

Funding

This research was funded by the Deanship of Graduate Studies at AL-Ahliyya Amman University through its council number 14/6/2019-2020.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Pharmacological and Diagnostic Research Center, Faculty of Pharmacy, Al-Ahliyya Amman University, Al-Salt, Jordan

    Rania Naser, Rana Abu-Huwaij & Iqbal Al-khateeb

  2. Pharmacological and Diagnostic Research Center, Faculty of Allied Medical Sciences, Al-Ahliyya Amman University, Al-Salt, Jordan

    Manal M. Abbas & Ali M. Atoom

Authors
  1. Rania Naser
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  2. Rana Abu-Huwaij
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Contributions

RAH and EAK designed the project; RN, MA and AA performed the experiments; RAH supervised the project; RN wrote the original draft; RAH, EAK, MA, and AA edited & reviewed the manuscript.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Rana Abu-Huwaij.

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Appendices

Appendix 1. The absorbance at the wavelength (λ = 590 nm) of the treated and no-treated cancerous cells (A549) using ELx800 Absorbance Microplate Reader with their average and standard deviation of each treatment.

Treatment

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

Avg

SD

Fresh ZnO NPs

0.388

0.385

0.387

0.394

0.315

0.375

0.356

0.368

0.396

0.324

0.369

0.0288

Old ZnO NPs

0.373

0.4

0.35

0.359

0.316

0.476

0.384

0.363

0.354

0.316

0.369

0.0459

Plant extract

1.127

1.245

1.1

1.183

1.296

0.999

1.232

1.291

1.244

1.120

1.184

0.0956

DOX

0.794

0.805

0.843

       

0.814

0.0257

ZnO powder

2.366

2.409

2.395

       

2.39

0.0219

DMSO

1.152

1.234

1.045

       

1.144

0.0948

Media alone

0.111

0.195

0.11

       

0.139

0.0488

Media and non treated cells

1.485

1.437

1.47

1.53

1.381

1.372

1.577

1.472

1.414

1.421

1.456

0.0645

Appendix 2. The absorbance at the wavelength (λ = 590 nm) of treated and non-treated cancerous cells (TNBC) using ELx800 Absorbance Microplate Reader with their average and standard deviation of each treatment

Treatment

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

8

9

10

Avg

SD

Fresh ZnO NPs

0.261

0.234

0.395

0.225

0.382

0.3

0.343

0.239

0.309

0.343

0.303

0.0454

Old ZnO NPs

0.292

0.294

0.282

0.292

0.332

0.285

0.306

0.295

0.292

0.297

0.297

0.014

Plant extract

1.024

1.301

1.143

1.216

1.181

1.149

1.053

1.097

1.047

1.170

1.138

0.0855

DOX

0.617

0.856

0.841

       

0.771

0.1339

ZnO powder

1.994

2.447

2.274

       

2.238

0.2286

DMSO

1.231

1.231

1.293

       

1.252

0.0358

Media alone

0.185

0.215

0.189

       

0.196

0.0163

Media and non-treated cells

1.089

1.311

1.354

1.386

1.256

1.383

1.293

1.176

1.262

1.197

1.271

0.0958

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Naser, R., Abu-Huwaij, R., Al-khateeb, I. et al. Green synthesis of zinc oxide nanoparticles using the root hair extract of Phoenix dactylifera: antimicrobial and anticancer activity. Appl Nanosci 11, 1747–1757 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13204-021-01837-0

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