Isolation and Structural Characterization of Saponins from the Cephalaria Genus and Synthesis of the Saponin-Loaded Chitosan Nanoparticles

In recent years, saponins have increasingly attracted researchers' attention owing to their multiple biological activities such as antifungal, cytotoxic, immunomodulatory and antimicrobial effects. In this study, targeted biologically active saponins from Cephalaria species were obtained by extraction, isolation and purification processes; additionally, the structures of saponins were elucidated by advanced spectroscopic methods. Optimisation studies were performed by using a UV-Vis spectrophotometer on three different saponins namely, elmalienoside B, sumbulianoside A and alpha-hederin, isolated from Cephalaria species. The alpha-hederin saponin-loaded chitosan nanoparticles (SPCSNPs) were synthesised by employing an ionic gelation technique; subsequently, they were characterised. The encapsulation efficiency, loading capacity, and particle size of SPCSNPs were found to be 38 %, 3.7 % and 183.00 +/- 41.01 nm, respectively. In vitro cytotoxicity studies were conducted on SHSY-5Y, CCD34LU, Panc-1, PC-3 and HL-60 cell lines. When looking at the cytotoxic efficacy of SPCSNPs measured in percentage (3.65 %) in all cell lines, it was found that the efficacy of SPCSNPs was significantly higher than that of pure saponin. Consequently, the bioavailability and stability of biologically active saponins may increase thanks to the chitosan drug delivery system synthesized in this study and it is evident that saponin based chitosan nanoparticles have potential candidate for cancer researches.