Beta cyclodextrin stabilized cupric oxide nanoparticles assisted thermal therapy for lung tumor and its effective in vitro anticancer activity

The unique physicochemical properties of cupric oxide nanoparticles (CuO NPs) make them suitable for a wide range of therapeutic applications. Here, we synthesized β-cyclodextrin (βCD) capped CuO NPs (CuONPs@βCD) using a simple reduction process. The formation and physicochemical characteristics were identified via different spectroscopic techniques. The CuONPs@βCD displayed antimicrobial activity as good as commercial drugs. Dimethyl thiazolyl tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay was carried out to assess the anticancer properties of CuONPs@βCD against A549 lung cancer cells. The result demonstrated that the anticancer activity of CuONPs@βCD with IC₅₀ values of 41.06 ± 0.05 and 19.46 µg/mL at 24 and 48-h incubation period, respectively. CuONPs@βCD exhibited anticancer activity on A549 lung cancer cells while having less adverse effects on normal cells. Annexin V-FITC/PI assay, reactive oxygen species (ROS) analysis, disruption of mitochondrial membrane potential (Δψm), and AO/EB apoptosis studies in A549 cells revealed significant apoptotic impact of CuONPs@βCD when compared to the control. Moreover, thermal therapy study of CuONPs@βCD in lung tumor using COMSOL Multiphysics has been reported. Our investigation revealed Case III, where the temperature distribution at the top surface of the tumor is best and may be the most effective way to treat lung cancer. It was found that an incident flux of 8000 Wm^{− 2} for 900 s and an extinction coefficient of 8.266 m^{− 1} for CuONPs@βCD were the best conditions for reaching a temperature of 43.63 °C across the whole tumor area. Thus, these findings open new research opportunities and potential use of CuONPs@βCD for biological applications.