Evaluation of cytotoxic effects of fungal origin nanosilver particles on oral cancer cell lines: An in vitro study

Background: Oral cancer is often associated with poor prognosis and it is found that conventional treatment options cause severe side effects, adjacent tissue disfigurement, and loss of function. Recently, silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) paved their path for cancer treatment. Aim: This study aimed to investigate cytotoxic effects of fungal procured AgNPs on oral squamous cell carcinoma (SCC-9) cell line using 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay. Methodology: The silver nanoparticles were biosynthesized using the fungi Fusarium semitectum. Cell lines were cultured in a 1:1 ratio of Dulbecco's Modified Eagle's medium and Ham's F12 medium and subcultured in a T-75 cm(2) flask. Cell count was adjusted to 1 x 10(5) cells/ml; 50,000 cells/well were seeded into a 96 well plate and incubated at 37 degrees C, for 24 h in 5% CO2 humidified conditions. AgNPs (1.75-50 mu l/ml) were added to the plates and further incubated at 37 degrees C for another 24 h. Medium containing cells without AgNPs were used as a control group. Later, 20 mu l of MTT was added to each well and incubated for 6 h at above-mentioned conditions. About 0.1 mL of Dulbecco's Modified Eagle's Medium solution was added to each well to solubilize formazan. The absorbance was measured using a Tecan reader at 540 nm. The experiment was repeated thrice independently. The percentage (%) inhibition of growth and the AgNP's concentration that prevents the cell growth by 50% (IC50) were determined. Results: Significant dose-dependent inhibition of the growth of SCC-9 cell lines was seen and IC50 was found at 12 mu l/ml concentration of AgNPs. Conclusion: Biosynthesized AgNPs of fungal origin exhibit effective anticancer properties against the SCC-9 cell line.