Targeted nanotherapeutic strategy for melanoma using silk-fibroin based artemisinin nanoparticles

Skin cancer is one of the most common cancers in the world, and malignant melanoma is the most aggressive and life-threatening form of skin cancer. It often quickly spreads to other parts of the body and may not always respond well to standard treatments. This calls for the urgent development of more effective and targeted treatment strategies. Protein-based nanoparticles have gained considerable attention in oncology owing to their improved bioavailability, tumour-targeted delivery potential, and reduced systemic toxicity. Silk fibroin, a versatile natural biopolymer, has emerged as a promising drug-delivery platform because of its excellent biocompatibility, biodegradability, and structural adaptability. In the present study, spherical silk fibroin-stabilised artemisinin nanoparticles (SF-ARTNPs) were synthesised and evaluated for their anti-melanoma efficacy. The developed nanoparticles demonstrated enhanced stability, improved aqueous dispersibility, high drug-loading efficiency (86.27 ± 2.05%), and a sustained drug-release profile (84.60 ± 7.29%). In vitro cytotoxicity studies revealed that SF-ARTNPs significantly reduced the viability of A375 melanoma cells to 23.31 ± 4.62% at a concentration of 40 µg mL^-1, which is further corroborated by scratch assay results indicating suppressed cell migration. Collectively, these findings suggest that SF-ARTNPs have strong potential as an effective nanotherapeutic platform for treating malignant melanoma.