Tuning the Morphology of Au/ZnO Nanocomposite Using Pulsed Laser Ablation for Anticancer Applications

Developing a nanosized platform for annihilating cancer cells is highly promising and desirable in the field of nanomedicine especially when an eco-friendly synthesis protocol such as laser ablation is employed. Herein, pulsed laser ablation technique was used to fabricate Au/ZnO nanocomposite in deionized water. The prepared nanostructures were examined using HRTEM, SEM, EDX, XRD, UV–Vis, and Raman spectroscopy. An in vitro cytotoxicity evaluation of the prepared Au/ZnO nanocomposite on human colorectal carcinoma HCT116 and cervical cancer HeLa cells reveals the strong inhibitory action of the nanomaterials on the cancer cells. The influence of the nanocomposites on healthy HEK-293 cell line used as a control was minimal. The outcomes of this work mark the merits of laser ablation in the fabrication of highly pure nanomaterials with good efficacy against cancer cells.