Green synthesized silver nanoparticles for the treatment of diabetes and the related complications of hyperlipidemia and oxidative stress in diabetic rats

This study was conducted to compare the impact of cinnamon silver nanoparticles (C-Ag-NPs) and cinnamon aqueous extract (CAE) on the total body weight (TBW), body weight gain (BWG), blood count (BC), fasting blood glucose (FBG), triglycerides (TGs), total cholesterol (TC), low-density (LDL-C) and high-density (HDL-C) lipoprotein cholesterol, liver function enzymes, superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), and glutathione peroxidase (GPx) of normal and streptozotocin (STZ) diabetic rats. The CAE was administered to rats at different doses (50.0 and 100.0 mg/kg bw), whereas the C-Ag-NPs were ingested at doses of 25.0 and 50.0 mg/kg bw for 30 days. At the end of the experiment, the administration of high or low dosages of CAE or C-Ag-NPs to diabetic rats significantly reduced the FBG, TC, TG, and LDL-C and significantly increased the HDL-C compared with the diabetic control rats. The highest dose (50.0 mg/kg bw) of the C-Ag-NPs was the most efficient at significantly reducing (P < 0.05) the levels of all the analyzed parameters compared with the CAE. However, the treated and normal rats did not show any hypoglycemic activity after ingesting the CAE or C-Ag-NPs. Such effects were associated with considerable increases in their BWG. The diabetic rats that ingested the CAE or C-Ag-NPs showed a gradual decrease in their FBG, TC, LDL, and TG levels, but they were still higher than those in the normal rats. Furthermore, the C-Ag-NPs and CAE considerably enhanced the hepatic (GPT, GOT, ALP, and GGT) and antioxidant biomarker enzyme activities (SOD, CAT, and GPx) in diabetic rats. Relative to the untreated diabetic control, the C-Ag-NPs were more effective than the CAE in the diabetic rats. The C-Ag-NPs exhibited a protective role against hyperglycemia and hyperlipidemia in the diabetic rats and modulated their liver function enzyme biomarkers and antioxidant enzyme activities more than the CAE.

An Analysis of the Toxicity, Antioxidant, and Anti-Cancer Activity of Cinnamon Silver Nanoparticles in Comparison with Extracts and Fractions of Cinnamomum Cassia at Normal and Cancer Cell Levels

In this work, the extract of cinnamon bark was used for the green synthesis of cinnamon-Ag nanoparticles (CNPs) and other cinnamon samples, including ethanolic (EE) and aqueous (CE) extracts, chloroform (CF), ethyl acetate (EF), and methanol (MF) fractions. The polyphenol (PC) and flavonoid (FC) contents in all the cinnamon samples were determined. The synthesized CNPs were tested for the antioxidant activity (as DPPH radical scavenging percentage) in Bj-1 normal cells and HepG-2 cancer cells. Several antioxidant enzymes, including biomarkers, superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), glutathione peroxidase (GPx), glutathione-S-transferase (GST), and reduced glutathione (GSH), were verified for their effects on the viability and cytotoxicity of normal and cancer cells. The anti-cancer activity depended on apoptosis marker protein levels (Caspase3, P53, Bax, and Pcl2) in normal and cancerous cells. The obtained data showed higher PC and FC contents in CE samples, while CF showed the lowest levels. The IC₅₀ values of all investigated samples were higher, while their antioxidant activities were lower than those of vitamin C (5.4 g/mL). The CNPs showed lower IC₅₀ value (55.6 µg/mL), whereas the antioxidant activity inside or outside the Bj-1 or HepG-2 was found to be higher compared with other samples. All samples execrated a dose-dependent cytotoxicity by decreasing the cells' viability percent of Bj-1 and HepG-2. Similarly, the anti-proliferative potency of CNPs on Bj-1 or HepG-2 at different concentrations was more effective than that of other samples. Higher concentrations of the CNPs (16 g/mL) showed greater cell death in Bj-1 (25.68%) and HepG-2 (29.49%), indicating powerful anti-cancer properties of the nanomaterials. After 48 h of CNPs treatment, both Bj-1 and HepG-2 showed significant increases in biomarker enzyme activities and reduced glutathione compared with other treated samples or untreated controls (p < 0.05). The anti-cancer biomarker activities of Caspas-3, P53, Bax, and Bcl-2 levels were significantly changed in Bj-1 or HepG-2 cells. The cinnamon samples were significantly increased in Caspase-3, Bax, and P53, while there were decreased Bcl-2 levels compared with control.