Green synthesized Moringa oleifera Leaf Powder – Silver Nanoparticles (MOLP-AgNPs) promotes apoptosis by targeting Caspase-3 and Phosphorylated-AKT signaling in MCF-7 cells

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Happy Kurnia Permatasari, Sa'diyatul Rizqie Amaliyah Firdaus, Hendra Susanto, Nik Ahmad Nizam Nik Malek, Widodo, Holipah, Hikmawan Wahyu Sulistomo

2025 Journal of Agriculture and Food Research Vol. 19 Article Cited by 11 Quartile

Abstract

High mortality rates of breast cancer have been known as a significant health problem among women. As a widely consumed plant, Moringa oleifera contains many phytochemical constituents that can inhibit cancer cell activity. This study involves using Moringa oleifera to impede the development of cancer cells through green-based silver nanoparticle synthesis by targeting programmed cell death. Different analytical techniques were used to analyze the synthesized AgNPs, and it showed that MOLP-AgNPs have a spheroid form, and its surface plasmon resonance (SPR) was detected in the 476–478 nm range. Based on the total viable cells through dye exclusion assay, it showed that MOLP-AgNPs significantly reduced breast cancer cell viability, and there was no significant cytotoxic activity of MOLP-AgNPs against non-cancerous cells after 24 h investigation. Caspase-3 is an apoptosis-related protein and phosphorylated AKT, which plays a crucial role in cell growth and may interact with AgNPs indirectly. It was observed that MOLP-AgNPs promote apoptosis through Caspase-3-dependent signaling and inhibit AKT phosphorylation in a dose-dependent manner. These findings indicated that MOLP-AgNPs have the potential for further development as anticancer drugs, particularly for breast cancer. © 2025

Affiliations

Department of Biochemistry and Biomolecular, Faculty of Medicine, Brawijaya University, Malang, 65145, Indonesia; Department of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Brawijaya University, Malang, 65145, Indonesia; Department of Biology, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Universitas Negeri Malang, Malang, 65114, Indonesia; Centre of Sustainable Nanomaterials, Department of Biosciences, Faculty of Biosciences, University Teknologi Malaysia, Johor, 81310, Malaysia; Department of Biology, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Brawijaya University, Malang, 65145, Indonesia; Department of Public Health, Faculty of Medicine, Brawijaya University, Malang, 65145, Indonesia; Department of Pharmacology, Faculty of Medicine, Brawijaya University, Malang, 65145, Indonesia