Nitric oxide releasing photoresponsive nanohybrids as excellent therapeutic agent for cervical cancer cell lines.

Gold nanoparticles (GNPs) that can release nitric oxide (NO) on visible-light irradiation were prepared using 2-mercapto-5-nitro benzimidazole (MNBI) as stabilizer. These nanoparticles meet overall prerequisites for biomedical applications like small sizes, water solubility, and stability. It was found that even a very low dosage of MNBI-stabilized GNPs exhibit appreciable tumor cell mortality against cervical cancer cell lines, demonstrating the role of NO in killing cancer cells.