Elsevier

Materials Today Bio

Volume 1, January 2019, 100001
Materials Today Bio

Anticarcinogenic activity of blue fluorescent hexagonal boron nitride quantum dots: as an effective enhancer for DNA cleavage activity of anticancer drug doxorubicin

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mtbio.2019.01.001Get rights and content
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Highlights

  • Blue fluorescent hexagonal boron nitride quantum dots (h-BNQDs) were developed at low temperature ∼ 120 °C.

  • h-BNQDs as an effective enhancer for DNA cleavage activity of the anticancer drug doxorubicin (DOX).

  • Enhanced DNA cleavage activity of DOX checked by converting supercoiled fragment into nicked circular PBR322 DNA.

  • BNQDs were shown to kill the breast cancer cell MCF-7 extensively as compared with the normal human keratinocyte cell HaCaT.

  • The reduced reactive oxygen species level and increased apoptosis in MCF-7 cells may liable to enhance the anticancerous activity of DOX.

Abstract

Blue fluorescent hexagonal boron nitride quantum dots (h-BNQDs) of ∼10 nm size as an effective enhancer for DNA cleavage activity of anticancer drug doxorubicin (DOX) were synthesized using simple one-step hydrothermal disintegration of exfoliated hexagonal boron nitride at very low temperature ∼ 120 °C. Boron nitride quantum dots (BNQDs) at a concentration of 25 μg/ml enhanced DNA cleavage activity of DOX up to 70% as checked by converting supercoiled fragment into nicked circular PBR322 DNA. The interaction of BNQDs with DOX is proportional to the concentration of BNQDs, with binding constant Kb ∼0.07338 μg/ml. In addition, ab initio theoretical results indicate that DOX is absorbed on BNQDs at the N-terminated edge with binding energy −1.075 eV and prevented the normal replication mechanisms in DNA. BNQDs have been shown to kill the breast cancer cell MCF-7 extensively as compared with the normal human keratinocyte cell HaCaT. The cytotoxicity of BNQDs may be correlated with reduced reactive oxygen species level and increased apoptosis in MCF-7 cells, which may be liable to enhance the anticancerous activity of DOX. The results provide a base to develop BNQD-DOX as a more effective anticancer drug.

Keywords

Hydrothermal
MCF-7
HaCaT
Reduced ROS level

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