Silk Cocoon-Derived Protein Bioinspired Gold Nanoparticles as a Formidable Anticancer Agent

We synthesized bioinspired sericin encapsulated gold nanoparticles (SGNPs) using HAuCl₄ as the starting material in a bottom-up approach. Further, two-dimensional (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) conformational changes (folding and unfolding) in sericin were studied using circular dichroism (CD) and fluorescence spectroscopy, respectively, during and after the synthesis of particles. Finally, the synthesized SGNPs were characterized using several physical techniques to ensure their correct synthesis and study the size, stability, and charge over the surface of particles. At the beginning of the reaction, when gold was in the ionic form (Au+³), sericin exhibited maximum electrostatic interaction and underwent unfolding. Au+³ reduced to Au during the reaction, and sericin regained its 3D confirmation due to a decrease in its native electrostatic interactions. However, CD revealed the same patterns of unfolding and folding; a decrease in α helix and an increase inβ3 pleated sheets were noticed. Although the 3D structure of sericin was restored after the synthesis of SGNPs, it was substantially altered. In addition, certain changes in the 2D structure were observed; however, these did not alter the activity of sericin. Furthermore, Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) confirmed these findings. The SGNPs were found to be effective against lung cancer (A549 cells), with an IC50 of 145.49 βM, without exerting any toxic effects on normal cells (NRK cells). The effectiveness of SGNPs was examined by MTT cytotoxicity and nuclear fragmentation assays. Furthermore, we assessed their ability to produce excessive ROS and release Cyt-c from the mitochondria for caspase-3-mediated apoptosis.