Effect of curcumin sorbed selenite substituted hydroxyapatite on osteosarcoma cells: An in vitro study

In this study, efforts were made to tailor an analogous bone material with enhanced anticancer activity against osteosarcoma cells MG-63, which is the most common malignant tumor in bone. In the current investigation, Hydroxyapatite (HA) Nanorods with different amount of Selenite substitution were synthesized via a straightforward wet chemical process. From X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis, it is revealed that the incorporation of selenite ion in HA has altered the lattice parameters and transmission electron microscopy (TEM) reveals the nano rod morphology of the synthesized HA. X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS) and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) techniques revealed the successful substitutions of phosphate groups by selenite oxyanion. Anticancer activity against Osteosarcoma cells (MG-63) was demonstrated with Selenite substituted HA samples, and they showed increased activity with the increase in SeO32− content. Curcumin sorbed HA samples were also prepared to investigate the role of curcumin in the enhancement of anticancer activity. The sample HA-Se-5 (300 μg/mL) with highest Se ratio (Se/(Se + P)% = 5%) showed 63% of inhibition of MG-63 cells. Interestingly, enhancement inactivity was evidenced when treated with Curcumin sorbed HA-Se-5 (CHA-Se-5, 300 μg/mL), and it exhibited the maximum inhibition of 71%. This synergic effect of curcumin and selenite can be harnessed in bone cancer treatment.