Effects of chitosan-stabilized selenium nanoparticles on cell proliferation, apoptosis and cell cycle pattern in HepG2 cells: Comparison with other selenospecies

•A systematic comparison of the effect of Ch-SeNPs vs. other selenocompounds on hepatocarcinoma cells in terms of proliferation, apoptosis and cell cycle pattern has been carried out.•Cells exposed to Se(VI), seleno methylselenocysteine and selenomethionine do not exhibit a different behavior as compared to control cells at the tested concentrations.•Se(IV) induce a significant degree of apoptosis proving to be the most toxic selenospecies assayed.•Ch-SeNPs and selenocystine exposure induced a cell cycle arrest at the S-G2/M phase.•Ch-SeNPs showed a unique potential for targeting mitosis by partially inhibiting the expression of cyclin-dependent kinase 1 (Cdk1). Selenium is an essential element that plays an important role in many biological functions. Many studies have reported the potential beneficial effects of Se intake for cancer therapy and prevention, which are not only dose-dependent but also closely related to the properties of specific selenospecies. Selenium nanoparticles are considered a novel selenium compound with excellent antioxidant properties; however, little is known about the properties of selenium nanoparticles in comparison to other well-studied selenospecies. Here, we combined different independent bioanalytical approaches to carry out a comparison between the effects of selenium nanoparticles and other selenocompounds (inorganic and organic selenospecies) using an in-vitro model. The bioanalytical characterization of different parameters such as cell proliferation, apoptosis and cell cycle pattern on HepG2 cells has shown the unique properties of this relatively novel compound that support and complete prior evidences for future applications as chemotherapeutic agent.