Gallic Acid Enhancement of Gold Nanoparticle Anticancer Activity in Cervical Cancer Cells

Cervical cancer (CxCa) is the most common cancer in women and a prominent cause of cancer mortalityworldwide. The primary cause of CxCa is human papillomavirus (HPV). Radiation therapy and chemotherapyhave been used as standard treatments, but they have undesirable side effects for patients. It was reported thatgallic acid has antioxidant, antimicrobial, and anticancer activities. Gold nanoparticles are currently being usedin medicine as biosensors and drug delivery agents. This study aimed to develop a drug delivery agent usinggold nanoparticles conjugated with gallic acid. The study was performed in uninfected (C33A) cervical cancercells, cervical cancer cells infected with HPV type 16 (CaSki) or 18 (HeLa), and normal Vero kidney cells. Theresults showed that GA inhibited the proliferation of cancer cells by inducing apoptosis. To enhance the efficacyof this anticancer activity, 15-nm spherical gold nanoparticles (GNPs) were used to deliver GA to cancer cells.The GNPs-GA complex had a reduced ability compared to unmodified GA to inhibit the growth of CxCa cells.It was interesting that high-concentration (150 μM) GNPs-GA was not toxic to normal cells, whereas GA alonewas cytotoxic. In conclusion, GNPs-GA could inhibit CxCa cell proliferation less efficiently than GA, but it wasnot cytotoxic to normal cells. Thus, gold nanoparticles have the potential to be used as phytochemical deliveryagents for alternative cancer treatment to reduce the side effects of radiotherapy and chemotherapy.