Biosynthesized CdS Nanoparticle Induces ROS-dependent Apoptosis in Human Lung Cancer Cells

Background: The World Health Organization (WHO) estimated that the number of cancer-related deaths was 9.6 million in 2018 and 2.09 million deaths occurred by lung cancer. The American Institute for Cancer Research (AICR) also observed gender preferences in lung cancer, common in men than women. Since the past decade, nanoparticles have now been widely documented for their anti-cancer properties, which signifies that the development of nanotechnology would be a future diagnosis and treatment strategy for lung cancer. Objective: The current study aimed to investigate the role of biosynthesized CdS nanoparticles (CdS NPs) in lung cancer cells (A549). Therefore, whether the CdS NP induces lung cancer cell death and the underlying mechanism is yet to be elucidated. Methods: Literature was searched from various archives of biomedical and life science journals. Then, CdS NPs were biosynthesized and characterized by traditional and cutting-edge protocols. The CdS NP-mediated cell death was elucidated following standard protocols. Results: CdS NPs induced cytotoxicity towards A549 cells in a dose-dependent manner. However, such a death mechanism does not go through necrosis. Intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS) accumulation and mitochondrial membrane depolarization demonstrated that cell death is associated with intracellular ROS production. Furthermore, increased sub-G1 population, Bax expression, and decreased Bcl-2 expression revealed that the death was caused by apoptosis. Conclusion: CdS NPs promote apoptosis-mediated lung cancer cell death through ROS production.