IC₅₀ Evaluation of Platinum Nanocatalysts for Cancer Treatment in Fibroblast, HeLa, and DU-145 Cell Lines

Cancer is a major public health problem being one of the main causes of morbidity and mortality today. Recent advances in catalytic nanomedicine have offered new cancer therapies based on the administration of nanoparticles (NPs) of platinum (Pt) dispersed in catalytic mesoporous nanomaterials (titania, TiO₂) with highly selective cytotoxic properties and no adverse effects. A half maximal inhibitory concentration (IC₅₀) study was carried out in cancerous cell lines (HeLa, DU-145, and fibroblasts) to evaluate the cytotoxic effect of different nanomaterials [Pt/TiO₂, TiO₂, and Pt(acac)₂] synthesized by the sol-gel method at concentrations 0-1000 μg/mL. The assays showed that IC₅₀ values for Pt in functionalized TiO₂ (NPt) in HeLa (53.74 ± 2.95 μg/mL) and DU-145 (75.07 ± 5.48 μg/mL) were lower than those of pure TiO₂ (74.29 ± 8.95 and 82.02 ± 6.03 μg/mL, respectively). Pt(acac)₂ exhibited no cytotoxicity. Normal cells (fibroblasts) treated with NPt exhibited no significant growth inhibition, suggesting the high selectivity of the compound for cancerous cells only. TiO₂ and NPt were identified as antineoplastic compounds in vitro. Pt(acac)₂ is not recommendable because of the low cytotoxicity observed.