**2.1 Materials**

Sigma Aldrich provided silver nitrate (AgNO3) and chloroaurate (HAuCl4), which were used without additional purification. The *C. reticulata* and *P. granatum* were purchased from a local market. The National Centre for Cell Science (NCCS), Pune, India, provided human lung carcinoma (A549) and colorectal carcinoma (HCT116) cell lines.
