Anticancerous activity of transition metal oxide nanoparticles

Abstract

Transition metal oxide (TMO) nanoparticles are becoming a major thrust area of research due to their potential anticancer activity. Their variable d-shell configurations, limited size, and a high density of corner or edge surface sites render them to exhibit unique physical and chemical properties. The TMO nanoparticles have shown excellence in various fields including catalysis, biomedical, solar cell, and lithium-ion batteries. Nanoparticles of copper oxide, iron oxide, nickel oxide, and zinc oxide have been shown to exhibit potential cytotoxic effects against some human cancer cell lines. They have been also found to exhibit reactive oxygen species-mediated cell death in some of these cell lines.