Synthesis, characterization and cytotoxicity studies of CuO nanoparticles by using Gymnema sylvestre leaf extracts

P.G. and Research Department of Chemistry, Jamal Mohamed College (Autonomous),
Tiruchirappalli-620 020, Tamilnadu, India
E-mail : agjafar@yahoo.co.in
P.G. and Research Department of Physics, Jamal Mohamed College (Autonomous), Tiruchirappalli-620 020,
Tamilnadu, India
Manuscript received 05 January 2015, revised 20 May 2016, accepted 25 May 2016

Gymnema sylvestre leaf extract reduced CuO nanoparticles (NPs) were synthesized successfully by the single step green method. The synthesized NPs retained the monoclinic structure, which was confirmed by X-ray diffraction studies. The TEM image showed the spherical shape morphology with average particle size of 22–30 nm. From the FTIR spectrum the Cu-O stretching frequency was observed at 528 cm^–1. The UV-Visible spectrum indicated that the peak at 208 nm confirmed the formation of CuO NPs. The synthesized of CuO NPs exhibited an effective cytotoxic effect against breast cancer cell lines (MCF-7) with an IC₅₀ value of 75 µg/ml. The acridine orange (AO) and ethidium bromide (EB) staining results were confirmed the cell death of MCF-7 breast cancer cell line. The toxicological behavior of synthesized CuO NPs was found due to the presence of uneven ridges in morphology and oxygen vacancies.