ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Nutr.
Sec. Nutrition and Food Science Technology
Volume 12 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fnut.2025.1666919
This article is part of the Research TopicNanoencapsulation: Revolutionizing Nutraceuticals with Enhanced Bioavailability and EfficacyView all articles
Modulation of LPS-Induced RAW 264.7 Macrophages by Pulsatilla koreana-Synthesized Gold Nanoparticles
Provisionally accepted
Yaxi Han1
Xindi Zhang1Ling Zhu1Kunlun Wang1Sha Dixin1Nina Ji2Jing Fan1Qing Chen1Kaixin Chen1Ye Zhou1Xinmiao Yao1Bo Li1
Lijun Guan1*- 1Institute of Food Processing, Heilongjiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Harbin, China
- 2Soybean Institute, Heilongjiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Harbin, China
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Biosynthesis of gold nanoparticles using medicinal plants has emerged as a promising strategy in nanobiotechnology due to their distinctive therapeutic attributes, including biological specificity, low cytotoxicity, and inherent biocompatibility. This study presents a straightforward phytosynthetic approach that eliminates requirements for additional stabilizing agents, demonstrating exceptional process simplicity and efficiency. The formation of Pk-AuNps was confirmed by UV-Vis spectroscopy with maximum absorbance at 540 nm. Comprehensive characterization through FE-TEM, EDX, and XRD revealed spherical morphology with face-centered cubic crystalline structure, while FTIR identified critical functional groups responsible for biological activity of Pk-AuNps. DPPH radical scavenging, ABTS inhibition, and ferric reducing power analysis further revealed that Pk-AuNps possess strong antioxidant activity. Cytocompatibility evaluations in RAW264.7 and A549 cell lines revealed excellent biosafety characteristics of Pk-AuNps, highlighting their biocompatibility for potential biomedical applications. Furthermore, the anti-inflammatory properties of Pk-AuNps in LPS-stimulated murine macrophages were also investigated. Notably, Pk-AuNps demonstrated potent anti-inflammatory effects in LPS-activated macrophages, significantly attenuating pro-inflammatory mediators through dual mechanisms: 1) Inhibition of NO and PGE2 production, and 2) Downregulation of iNOS and COX-2 gene expression. These findings indicate that Pk-AuNps show promise as functional food ingredients, demonstrating multifunctional bioactive properties to developing anti-inflammatory nutraceuticals.
Keywords: Pulsatila koreana, Phytosynthesis, Gold Nanoparticle, anti-inflammation, Functional Food
Received: 16 Jul 2025; Accepted: 03 Sep 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Han, Zhang, Zhu, Wang, Dixin, Ji, Fan, Chen, Chen, Zhou, Yao, Li and Guan. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Lijun Guan, Institute of Food Processing, Heilongjiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Harbin, China
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