Characterization, antioxidant, antimicrobial and cytotoxic activities of green synthesized silver and iron nanoparticles using alcoholic Blumea eriantha DC plant extract

[Display omitted] •First report on the synthesis and characterization of Iron and silver nanoparticles of blumea eriantha DC plant extract.•Our study is a pioneer attempt to verify the utility of synthesized nanoparticles (Ag and Fe) using blumea eriantha DC extract for their antioxidant, antimicrobial and anticancer potential.•Silver nanoparticles of blumea eriantha DC plant extract exhibited significant anticancer activity.•Potential source of natural antioxidants, antibacterial and anticancer agents. Silver and iron nanoparticles was synthesized, characterized and investigated for biological screening using alcoholic blumea eriantha DC plant extract. Equal amount of plant extract was mixed and incubated with silver nitrate and ferric chloride to obtain silver and iron nanoparticles respectively. Formation of silver and iron nanoparticles was confirmed by using UV, FT-IR spectroscopy, SEM, X-ray diffraction, and TEM. The anti-oxidant, antimicrobial, cytotoxic activities of the synthesized nanoparticles were determined by using standard protocols. MCF-7 cells were treated with selected concentrations of extract and prepared nanoparticles. It was observed that the synthesized nanoparticles were spherical in shape with an average particle size of 50 nm. The results of the studies revealed that the synthesized nanoparticles exhibited effective antioxidant, antibacterial and cytotoxic activity. The cell viability was measured for 50 hours after the addition of selected concentration of nanoparticles. The inhibition rate of silver nanoparticles was observed to be 15.45, 20.25 and 28.16 % against concentration 25, 50 and 100 μg mL-1 respectively. DPPI staining and Annexin V FITC assay results indicated that silver nanoparticle induce apoptosis in MCF-7 cells as compared with control. Therefore, it may open up a new avenue for anticancer therapies that needs further research.