Anticandidal and In vitro Anti-Proliferative Activity of Sonochemically synthesized Indium Tin Oxide Nanoparticles

The present work demonstrates the synthesis, characterization and biological activities of different concentrations of tin doped indium oxide nanoparticles (Sn doped In(2)O(3) NPs), i.e., (Sn/In = 5%, 10% and 15%). We have synthesized different size (38.11 nm, 18.46 nm and 10.21 nm) of Sn doped In(2)O(3) NPs. by using an ultra-sonication process. The Sn doped In(2)O(3) NPs were characterized by by x-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) which confirmed the successful doping of tin (Sn) with Indium oxide (In(2)O(3)). Anticandidal activity was performed by standard agar dilution method using Candida albicans for the study. The minimum inhibitory/fungicidal concentration (MIC/MFC) values recorded were, 8 & >8 mg/ml for pure In(2)O(3) NPs, 4 & 8 mg/ml for 5%, 2 & 8 mg/ml for 10%, whereas 1 & >4 mg/ml for 15% Sn doped In(2)O(3) NPs, respectively. The topographical alteration caused by Sn doped In(2)O(3) NPs on Candida cells, was clearly observed by SEM examination. A significant enhancement in anticandidal activity was seen, when Candida cells were exposed to (Sn/In = 5%, 10% and 15%). Moreover, we have also evaluated the impact of Sn-In(2)O(3) NPs on human colorectal carcinoma cells (HCT-116). The results demonstrated that Sn-In(2)O(3) NPs (Sn/In = 5%, 10% and 15%), caused dose dependent decrease in the cancer cell viability as the low dosage (2.0 mg/mL) showed 62.11% cell viability, while 4.0, 8.0, 16.0, 32.0 mg/mL dosages showed 20.45%, 18.25%, 16.58%, and 15.58% cell viability. In addition, the treatment of Sn-In(2)O(3) NPs also showed significant cellular and anatomical changes in cancer cells as examined by microscopes. We have also examined the impact of Sn-In(2)O(3) NPs (5%, 10%, 15%) on normal cells (HEK-293) and the results demonstrate that Sn-In(2)O(3) NPs did not reduce the cell viability of normal cells.