Sol-gel synthesis of strontium ferrate (SrFeO3) nanoparticles and evaluation of anti-leukemic effects against leukemic cell lines

Several studies have shown that metallic nanoparticles have a therapeutic impact on leukemia cells. On the other hand, the majority of these particles are hazardous to healthy and malignant cells. SrFeO3 nanoparticles were synthesized in the current study using sol-gel procedures. Several analytical methods, including scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), X-ray diffraction (XRD), and dynamic light scattering (DLS), were used to characterize the resulting nanoparticles. The considered particle size utilizing XRD was discovered to be in the range of 50 +/- 2 nm, which was further confirmed by DLS analysis. The Nalm-6 (ALL) and the K562 (CML) cell lines and PBMCs (Normal cells) were treated with 25, 50, 100, 150, and 200 mu g/ml of strontium nanoparticles for 24 and 48 h. Afterward, the cell viability and cell death were evaluated via MTT assays and flow cytometry analysis. The strontium nanoparticles with concentrations above 150 mu g/mL could cause a cytotoxic effect on the Nalm-6 and K562 leukemic cells. Strontium nanoparticles exhibited no harmful impact on healthy PBMCs, even though the flow cytometry examination revealed that apoptosis is the primary process of leukemic cell death. Thus, SrFeO3 nanoparticles show potential for application in future anti-leukemic therapies and pave the way to a new study setting. [GRAPHICS]