Characterization, cytotoxicity and anti-human renal cell carcinoma efficacies of copper nanoparticles green-synthesized by Panax ginseng

A recent study was undertaken to investigate the possible cytotoxic effects of copper nanoparticles (CuNPs) that include an aqueous extract of Panax ginseng on various human renal cell carcinoma cell lines, namely HEK293, CaKi-2, RCC-GH, and RCC-JW (KTCTL-195) for the first time. The identification of these nanoparticles was carried out using different techniques. To evaluate the potential anti-human renal cell carcinoma properties of the synthesized NPs, a 2,5-diphenyl-2H-tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay was conducted. Additionally, the 2,2-Diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH) assay was conducted to investigate the antioxidant efficacy. The peaks observed at 3398, 2918, 1617, and 1015 cm−1 in the secondary metabolites of the P. ginseng extract corresponded to the functional groups of O–H, C–H, C = O, C = C, and C-O, respectively. The X-ray powder diffraction (XRD) results revealed that the CuNPs had a CuO formula and exhibited a spherical morphology with a size of less than 80 nm, as observed in the FE-SEM image. To assess the anti-renal cell carcinoma efficacy of CuNPs, an MTT assay was performed on HUVEC, HEK293, CaKi-2, RCC-GH, and RCC-JW (KTCTL-195) cells. Notably, CuNPs exhibited high anti-renal cell carcinoma efficacy on the aforementioned tumor cells. The IC50 values of CuNPs were found to be 102, 149, 178 and 191 µg/mL on HEK293, CaKi-2, RCC-GH, and RCC-JW (KTCTL-195) cells, respectively. The results of this study revealed significant anti-renal cell carcinoma and antioxidant efficacies of CuNPs.