Abstract

In recent years, the experiments have revealed that plants raise the cytotoxicity and anticancer potentials of iron nanoparticles against several cell lines especially tumor cell lines. In the present study, we formulated a modern drug by iron nanoparticles (FeNPs) containing Glycyrrhiza glabra L leaf for the treatment of acute lymphoblastic leukemia. Characterization of FeNPs was done by TEM, FE-SEM, UV-Vis, and FT-IR. FE-SEM and TEM images revealed an average diameter of 11-18 nm for the nanoparticles. UV-Vis revealed an absorption band at 298 nm that is related to the surface plasmon resonance of FeNPs. FT-IR results offered antioxidant compounds in the nanoparticles were the sources of reducing power, reducing iron ions to FeNPs. MTT assay was used on normal (HUVEC) and acute lymphoblastic leukemia (MOLT-3, CEM/C2, TALL-104, and CCRF-CEM) cell lines for comparing the anti-acute lymphoblastic leukemia properties of FeCl3, G. glabra, and FeNPs. Iron nanoparticles had very low cell viability dose-dependently against MOLT-3, CEM/C2, TALL-104, CCRF-CEM cell lines without any cytotoxicity on the HUVEC cell line. The best result of cytotoxicity property of FeNPs against the above cell lines was seen in the case of CCRF-CEM cell line. These nanoparticles can be administrated in humans for the treatment of acute lymphoblastic leukemia after confirming in the in vivo and clinical trials.