Effect of peptide-conjugated nanoparticles on cell lines

Metal nanoparticles are widely used for the delivery and targeting of pharmaceutical, therapeutic and diagnostic agents in cancer therapy in recent years. The multifunctional nanoparticles constructed currently are supposed to show superior effects on cancer cells. This study was conducted to observe the difference between the effect of a biologically important peptide, silver (AgNPs) and gold (AuNPs) nanoparticles and their conjugates on two different cancer cells. Peptide (Boc-L-DP-LOMe) was acquired from different sources and subjected to conjugation with biosynthesized gold and silver nanoparticles under standard conditions. These conjugates were tested against the colon cancer (HT-29) and breast cancer (MDA MB-231) cell lines. The results clearly depicted the improved activity of nanoparticles in the form of conjugates. Fluorescent dye microscopy and DNA fragmentation assay substantiate the fact that the conjugated nanoparticles cause higher level of disintegration of DNA in cells that consecutively damages and causes apoptosis due to lethality.