Efficient removal of Reactive Red 194 textile dye using silver nanoparticles green-synthesized from Paliurus spina-christi fruit, and in vitro cytotoxicity studies

Recently, environmentally friendly green synthesis technologies utilizing nanoparticles have been developed for removing harmful textile dyes, which currently cause significant harm to human health and the ecosystem. In this regard, our study investigates the green synthesis of silver nanoparticles (PSC-AgNPs) using Paliurus spina-christi fruit (PSC) as a stabilizing agent and evaluates their photocatalytic properties and in vitro cytotoxicity studies. The synthesized PSC-AgNPs exhibited surface plasmon resonance (SPR), the phytochemicals responsible for the bioreduction of AgNPs, nanoscale size, uniform spherical morphology and well-defined crystalline structure, as confirmed by spectroscopic and microscopic analyses. The effectiveness of the synthesized PSC-AgNPs in removing dyes from aqueous solutions was evaluated using methylene blue (MB) as a synthetic basic dye and Reactive Red 194 (RR 194) as a textile dye. Notably, the photocatalytic activity of the synthesized PSC-AgNPs in degrading the RR 194 dye has been demonstrated for the first time. The removal efficiency of MB and RR 194 dyes treated with the PSC-AgNPs reached 96.84% at 120 min and 69.73% at 160 min, respectively. Furthermore, the in vitro cytotoxicity of PSC extract and PSC-AgNPs against human pancreatic cancer cells (MIA PaCa) was assessed using the MTT assay, resulting in a dose-dependent response. In light of these results, the eco-friendly synthesized AgNPs exhibited effective photocatalytic capabilities in degrading MB dye and RR194 dye without the addition of any catalysts, making them a promising candidate for environmental remediation.