Multi-functional fluorescent carbon dots with antibacterial and gene delivery properties (original) (raw)

Carbon Dots as Antimicrobial and Antiviral Nanomaterials and Drug Delivery Applications

BJSTR, 2022

The methodologies for synthesizing Carbon Dots (CDs) in general are easy Carbon Dots are easy to produce, methodologies are simple, and can be made from polymers, carbon-based materials, biomass, and other carbon precursors. In general, CDs are carbon-based nanomaterial with a small size of 10 nm or below. Among its features are low toxicity, biocompatibility, and great chemical stability with photoelectric properties. CDs have targeted shipping applications that can be monitored with fluorescent properties. Recently, CDs have gained interest in biomedical applications due to their excellent antibacterial and antiviral activities and their use as drug delivery Nano carriers.

Synthesis of ecofriendly fluorescent carbon dots and their biomedical and environmental applications

Materials Technology, 2018

Green Synthesis of nanoparticles is an emerging field with enormous advantages over conventional synthesis methods. Herein we have reported a green method for the preparation of water soluble polydisperse carbon dots (c-dots) from Cocos nucifera frond pinnae by a modified version of the 'single step hydrothermal carbonization'. C-dots having blue emission were obtained with this method and we further evaluated the effect of metal ions interactions on c-dots, as a sharp decrease in photoluminescence was observed. The synthesized c-dots were found bioactive against B.subtilis, M. smegmatis and S. aureus as determined by the well diffusion assay. We also explored nanotheranostic applications of c-dots as biosensor matrix in DNA hybridization sensor for pancreatic cancer and in bioimaging of cancer cells. This study demonstrated that c-dots can be explored for numerous biomedical and environmental applications in a variety of fields owing to the cost effective synthesis, biocompatibility and excellent physico-chemical properties.

Multifunctional carbon dots with high quantum yield for imaging and gene delivery

Carbon, 2014

Carbon dots (CD) are luminescent nanomaterial with unique properties that show great potential in many applications. Herein, branched polyethyleneimine-based carbon dots (PCD) are prepared from branched polyethyleneimine by oxidation and a modified hydrothermal reaction. Structure and composition analysis indicate that obtained PCD possesses a 3-4 nm in diameter and a graphitic structure with lattice spacing of 0.30 nm. The PCD has a quantum yield of 54.3%. The bright photoluminescence shows that it can be used for cell imaging. The PCD exhibits extremely good biocompatibility and can be applied for gene delivery. Because of its specific nanostructure and photoluminescence property, the multifunctional PCD prepared shows potential for applications in bioimaging and gene delivery.

Antimicrobial activity, cytotoxicity and DNA binding studies of carbon dots

Spectrochimica Acta Part A: Molecular and Biomolecular Spectroscopy, 2018

In recent years, quantum dots (QDs) are one of the most promising nanomaterials in lifesciences community due to their unexploited potential in biomedical applications; particularly in bio-labeling and sensing. In the advanced nanomaterials, carbon dots (CDs) have shown promise in next generation bioimaging and drug delivery studies. Therefore the knowledge of the exact nature of interaction with biomolecules is of great interest to designing better biosensors. In this study, the interaction between CDs derived from tamarind and calf thymus DNA (ct-DNA) has been studied by vital spectroscopic techniques, which revealed that the CDs could interact with DNA via intercalation. The apparent association constant has been deduced from the absorption spectral changes of ct-DNACDs using the Benesi-Hildebrand equation. From the DNA induced emission quenching experiments the apparent DNA binding constant of the CDs (Kapp) have also been evaluated. Furthermore, we have analyzed the antibacterial and antifungal activity of CDs using disc diffusion assay method which exhibited excellent antibacterial activity against E. coli and C .albicans with inhibition zone in the range of 7-12 mm. The biocompatible nature of CDs was confirmed by an in vitro cytotoxicity test on L6 normal rat myoblast cells by using MTT assay. The cell viability is not affected till the high dosage of CDs (200 µg/ml) for more than 48 h. As a consequence of the work, future development of CDs for microbial control and DNA sensing among the various biomolecules is possible in view of emerging biofields.

MULTI-FUNCTIONAL CARBON DOTS: A SYSTEMATIC OVERVIEW Review Article

International Journal of Applied Pharmaceutics, 2021

Carbon dots (CDs) have emerged as a potential material in the multifarious fields of biomedical applications due to their numerous advantageous properties including tunable fluorescence, water solubility, biocompatibility, low toxicity, small size and ease of modification, inexpensive scale-up production, and versatile conjugation with other targeted nanoparticles. Thus, CDs became a preferable choice in various biomedical applications such as nanocarriers for drugs, therapeutic genes, photo sensitizers, unique electronic, fluorescent, photo luminescent, chemiluminescent, and electro chemiluminescent, drug/gene delivery and optoelectronics properties are what gives them potential in sensing and antibacterial molecules. Further, their potentials have also been verified in multifunctional diagnostic platforms, cellular and bacterial bio-imaging, development of nanomedicine, etc. This present review provides a concise insight into the progress and evolution in the field of carbon dots research with respect to synthesis methods and materials available in bio-imaging, theranostic, cancer, gene therapy, diagnostics, etc. Further, our discussion is extended to explore the role of CDs in nanomedicine and nano theranostic, biotherapy which is the future of biomedicine and also serves to discuss the various properties of carbon dots which allow chemotherapy and gene therapy to be safer and more target-specific, resulting in the reduction of side effects experienced by patients and also the overall increase in patient compliance and quality of life and representative studies on their activities against bacteria, fungi, and viruses reviewed and discussed. This study will thus help biomedical researchers in percuss the potential of CDs to overcome various existing technological challenges.

Recent advance of carbon dots in bio-related applications

Journal of Physics: Materials, 2020

Carbon dots (CDs) is a kind of carbon nanoparticles with a plentiful of surface functional groups and tunable emission with different excitation wavelength. Broadly speaking, CDs include carbon nanodots, carbon quantum dots, graphene quantum dots, carbonized polymer dots. Due to the unique nature, they are explored for various applications in the bio-related fields such as bioimaging, sensor for ion and (bio)molecules, catalyst, LED and other fields. They are viewed as great alternative tracers to the current fluorescent biomarkers in personalized nanomedicine and surgery operation monitoring. In this review, we summarized the recent progress in the development of CDs, including improvement in fluorescence properties, two-photon fluorescence, and integration with other modalities as theragnostic agents. Specifically, we discussed the preparation of dual-modal imaging agents to improve the accuracy of diagnosis, the combination of imaging and targeting functionality for the effective...

Prosopis juliflora hydrothermal synthesis of high fluorescent carbon dots and its antibacterial and bioimaging applications

Scientific Reports, 2023

Carbon dots have stimulated the curiosity of biomedical researchers due to their unique properties, such as less toxicity and high biocompatibility. The synthesis of carbon dots for biomedical application is a core area in research. In the current research, an eco-friendly hydrothermal technique was employed to synthesize high fluorescent, plant-derived carbon dots from Prosopis juliflora leaves extract (PJ-CDs). The synthesized PJ-CDs were investigated by physicochemical evaluation instruments such as fluorescence spectroscopy, SEM, HR-TEM, EDX, XRD, FTIR, and UV-Vis. The UV-Vis absorption peaks obtained at 270 nm due to carbonyl functional groups shifts of n→π*. In addition, a quantum yield of 7.88 % is achieved. The synthesized PJ-CDs showing the presence of carious functional groups O-H, C-H, C=O, O-H, C-N and the obtained particles in spherical shape with an average size of 8 nm. The fluorescence PJ-CDs showed stability against various environmental factors such as a broad range of ionic strength and pH gradient. The antimicrobial activity of PJ-CDs was tested against a Staphylococcus aureus, and a Escherichia coli. The results suggest that the PJ-CDs could substantially inhibit the growth of Staphylococcus aureus. The findings also indicate that PJ-CDs are effective materials for bio-imaging in Caenorhabditis elegans and they can be also used for pharmaceutical applications. Pathogen such as bacteria, fungi, viruses, and parasites cause several diseases every year 1,2. Emergence of drug resistant pathogens hence the antibiotic resistance has quickly become one of the world's major life-threatening problems 3. Evolution and speed of bacterial drug resistance has outpaced exploration and development of new antibiotics which are hindered due to high cost and technical difficulties 4. This warrants an urgent need for production of novel and new alternative antibacterial drugs. The swift advancement of nanotechnology over the last several decades has resulted in the creation of promising antibacterial treatment alternatives 5. Nanomaterials containing metal nanoparticles such as Cu-NPs, Ag-NPs, and CuTe NPs usually produce reactive oxygen species and followed by discharge the metal ions; thereby leading to antimicrobial activity 6. However, in addition to the protein inactivation, enzymatic inhibition, oxidative stress, and DNA damage have all contributed to the presence of metal nanoparticles in non-target cells which can damage the healthy tissues and this is why the metal nanoparticles have limited clinical applicability 7. Carbon is a common non-metallic element that is abundant in environment, and it appears in a variety of allotropic forms including amorphous carbon, graphite, and diamond 8. Kroto et al. (1985), Water solubility and high fluorescence luminescent carbon dot were first reported in 2006 9. The Carbon dots (CDs) are normally pseudo nano-materials having amorphous and nano-crystalline structure

Carbon “quantum” dots for bioapplications

Experimental Biology and Medicine, 2021

Carbon “quantum” dots or carbon dots (CDots) exploit and enhance the intrinsic photoexcited state properties and processes of small carbon nanoparticles via effective nanoparticle surface passivation by chemical functionalization with organic species. The optical properties and photoinduced redox characteristics of CDots are competitive to those of established conventional semiconductor quantum dots and also fullerenes and other carbon nanomaterials. Highlighted here are major advances in the exploration of CDots for their serving as high-performance yet nontoxic fluorescence probes for one- and multi-photon bioimaging in vitro and in vivo, and for their uniquely potent antimicrobial function to inactivate effectively and efficiently some of the toughest bacterial pathogens and viruses under visible/natural or ambient light conditions. Opportunities and challenges in the further development of the CDots platform and related technologies are discussed.

Advances in fluorescent carbon dots for biomedical applications

Advances in Physics: X

Carbon Dots are an emerging class of carbon-based nanoparticles, which since their discovery have attracted tremendous attention because of their exceptional fluorescent, chemical and mechanical properties as well as high photostability and biocompatibility. This unique combination of outstanding characteristics, together with the ease with which they can be synthesized, qualify carbon dots as highly promising materials for applications in electronics and biology, in particular, for biosensing, bioimaging, biotherapy and drug delivery. In this review, we present some of the most recent applications of carbon dots in biology and medicine, concentrating on their fluorescence properties, biocompatibility and efficiency; we also discuss how improvements could prompt their use in human studies. We illustrate how carbon dots, prepared through several facile and costeffective methods by either the bottom-up or the top-down route, can be used for imaging cells and bacteria and as sensing probes of metal cations. Moreover, we explain how their astonishing versatility has given rise to new biotherapy methods especially in the field of cancer theranostics.