Evaluation of silver nitroprusside nanoparticles: selective toxicity against MCF-7 cells and in vivo antitumor activity

A number of different metallic nanoparticles have been extensively investigated in recent years owing to their diverse potential biomedical and cancer applications, antibacterial activities, and chemical properties. Here, silver nitroprusside nanoparticles (AgNPs) were prepared from silver nitrate and sodium nitroprusside, and their anticancer activity was evaluated. AgNPs were prepared and characterized using Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X-ray dispersive energy spectroscopy (EDX), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). In vitro tests were performed using two breast cancer cell lines, a non-malignant breast epithelial cell line (MCF-10A), and a breast cancer cell line (MCF-7). The results obtained from cytotoxicity assays (MTT and resazurin assays) and bright-field microscopy revealed that AgNPs (3.0 μg/mL) exhibited preferential selectivity for non-malignant breast epithelial cells and were toxic to tumorigenic cells (MCF-7), with preferential cell death via apoptosis. Furthermore, in vivo experiments using a murine breast tumor model demonstrated that AgNP treatment significantly inhibited tumor growth without systemic toxicity, confirming its selective antitumor activity. These results suggest that AgNPs have potential applications in breast cancer treatment. In this study, we focused on the development and application of silver nitroprusside nanoparticles in in vitro and in vivo models to evaluate their antitumor activity and effects in different models of breast cancer.