Synthesis and therapeutic potential of copper oxide nanoparticles from endophytic fungi: anti-cancer activities and mechanisms

Copper Oxide Nanoparticles (CuONPs) contain medicinal properties and are an essential component of the next generation due to their unique properties. CuONPs have a vital role in therapeutics, especially for cancer treatment. This study's main focus was synthesizing the CuONPs and assessing the anti-cancer activity, including the in vitro anti-angiogenesis and cytotoxicity analyses. CuONPs are synthesized using the enzymatic suspension of endophytic fungal strains FCSRL3 and FCPRS11 isolated from the Azadirachta indica grown in a minimal medium at optimum pH 7.2. About 14 different endophytic fungi confined from the neem tree, and the antagonistic and antioxidant properties were evaluated. The efficient FCSRL3 and FCPRS11 were identified as Aspergillus sydowi and Aspergillus versicolor at a molecular level. The synthesized CuONPs from two fungi were confirmed through characterization determination using SEM, EDAX, FT-IR, and XRD analyses. CuONPs revealed maximum antibacterial, antimycotic, and antioxidant activities at minimum concentration, exerting the highest bioactive properties. The anti-angiogenic activity of the CuONPs from two different fungal strains exhibited maximum inhibition of blood vessels in chick embryos, and the assessment was performed using HET-CAM. The outcomes of this research demonstrate the notable role of CuONPs in cancer remedies.