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Fluorescent carbon dots are the new quantum dots: an overview of their potential in emerging technologies and nanosafety

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Abstract

Carbon dots (CDs) have become a potential material for biosensing, drug delivery, and bioimaging because of their strong fluorescence, for which they are referred to as fluorescent carbon dots. CDs have drawn significant attention as a new class of carbonaceous nanomaterials with accelerating applications in varying different technologies. This attention is mainly based on a multitude of appealing properties of CDs, such as high hydrophilicity, biodegradability, biocompatibility, chemical stability, and ease of surface modification, together with their unique optic properties. In this review, CDs were classified and evaluated based on the difference in precursors and preparation methods. The synthetic methods of CDs were summarized, and their luminescence mechanism was analyzed. The applications of CDs in biosensing, drug delivery, energy, and bioimaging were also discussed. The issues and challenges of CDs were analyzed for their further development, with specific emphasis on the toxicity profiles or lack thereof, especially that of cytotoxicity and long-term genotoxicity developed secondary to nanotoxic effects, of carbon dot-based systems. Additional research in toxicity is sure to lead to improved baseline nanosafety statistics for CDs and will be a crucial determinant in the adoption of CDs into many fields across all scientific disciplines, as well as indirectly assist in the development of more efficient and cost-effective technologies. Suggestions for the development of the concepts contemplated herein were also provided, along with additional insight into the controversy concerning the phenomenon of emission and the upconverted photoluminescence.

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Abbreviations

CDs:

Carbon dots

CDots:

Carbon dots

CQDs:

Carbon dots

PL:

Photoluminescence

QDs:

Semi-metal-based quantum dots

LED:

Light-emitting diode

COOH:

Carboxyl group

OH:

Hydroxyl group

SWCNT:

Single-walled carbon nanotubes

MWCNT:

Multi-walled carbon nanotubes

PEG:

Polyethylene glycol

PPEI-EI:

Polypropyleneethyleneimine-co-ethylenimine

NMR:

Nuclear magnetic resonance

AFM:

Atomic force microscopy

TEM:

Transmission electron microscope

FT-IR:

Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy

XRD:

X-ray diffraction

UV:

Ultraviolet

HOMO:

Highest occupied molecule orbital

LUMO:

Lowest unoccupied molecular orbital

CNTs:

Carbon nanotubes

DSSC:

Dye-sensitized solar cells

PSC:

Perovskite solar cells

QDSC:

Quantum dot solar cells

OSC:

Organic solar cells

TiO2 :

Titanium dioxide

CD–RhB–TiO2 :

CD-doped dye/semiconductor complex system

J sc :

Short circuit current density

V oc :

Open circuit voltage

V :

Volt

PCE:

Power conversion efficiency

FF:

Fill factor

N719:

Ruthenium dye

PEG-m-CQDs:

Polyethylene glycol-modified carbon quantum dots

ETL:

Electron transfer layer

HTL:

Hole transfer layer

HTM:

Hole transfer material

SnO2 :

Tin(IV) oxide

SCs:

Supercapacitors

GO:

Graphene oxide

rGO:

Reduced graphene oxide

MnO2 :

Manganese dioxide

PPy:

Polypyrrole

PANI:

Polyaniline

CDs/PEI/NB:

Conjugated CDs with polyethyleneimine (PEI) and Nile blue (NB)

Hg:

Mercury

NB:

Nile blue

TPF:

Two-photon fluorescence

Cu2+ :

Copper

S2− :

Sulfide

PEI@CDs:

Polymeric ethylene imine functionalized photoluminescent carbon dots

BrO3 :

Bromate

Au@CQDs:

Gold nanoparticles @ carbon quantum dots nanocomposites

PVA:

Polyvinyl alcohol

PCDs:

Phosphorus-containing carbon dots

L929:

Murine fibroblast cell line

Gd:

Gadolinium

Gd@CQDs:

Gd3+ doped magneto-fluorescent carbon dots

FA-Gd@CQDs:

CDs conjugated with folic acid

MCF-7:

Breast cancer cell

MDA-MB-231:

Breast cancer cell

BT-549:

Human breast cancer cell

E@CDs:

Element-doped carbon dots

SH-SY5Y:

Labeled neuronal cells

DOX:

Doxorubicin

ROS:

Reactive oxygen

Spd-CQDs:

Spermidine-coated fluorescent carbon quantum dots

MDR:

Non-multidrug-resistant bacteria

MRSA:

Methicillin-resistant S. aureus

E. coli :

Escherichia coli

S. aureus :

Staphylococcus aureus

B. subtilis :

Bacillus subtilis

P. aeruginous :

Pseudomonas aeruginosa

AMP:

Ampicillin

AREC:

Ampicillin-resistant Escherichia coli

KREC:

Kanamycin-resistant Escherichia coli

NPs:

Nanoparticles

HepG2:

Human hepatocellular carcinoma cells

MTT:

3-(4,5-Dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide

MCF-10A:

Healthy mammary epithelial cells

FL83B:

Liver cells

CDs-PEG:

Polyethylene glycol-modified carbon dots

CD-Pri:

Pristine carbon dots

CDs-PEI:

Polyethyleneimine-coated carbon dots

NIH/3T3:

Mouse fibroblasts

Al-CDs:

Aluminum-doped carbon nanodots

TNFa:

Tumor necrosis factor-α

IL1:

Interleukin-1β

hMSCs:

Human mesenchymal stem cells

CNBs:

Carbon nanobeads

Pb2+ :

Palladium

Cd2+ :

Cadmium

B16F10:

Cellosaurus cell line

RAW264.7:

Murine macrophages

HEK-293:

Human embryonic kidney cell

LDH:

Lactate dehydrogenase

PEI:

Polyethyleneimine)

BPEI:

Branched poly-(ethylenimine)

PAA:

Poly(acrylic acid)

APTMS:

(3-Aminopropyl) trimethoxysilane

AT II:

Alveolar type II cells

DCFH-DA:

Dichloro-dihydro-fluorescein diacetate assay

NBT:

Nitroblue tetrazolium assay

p53:

The P53 gene

TNF3:

The TNF3 gene

CDKNIA:

The CDKNIA gene

NFKBIA:

The NFKBIA gene

AgNP:

Silver nanoparticle

CuO NP:

Copper oxide nanoparticle

TiO2 NP:

Titanium oxide nanoparticle

Ni NP:

Nickel nanoparticle

CAL-27:

Oral adenosquamous carcinoma cell

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Acknowledgements

MOA thanks to the doctoral scholarship of Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK, Grant No. 117M215) and Council of Higher Education of Turkey (YOK) for the doctoral scholarship.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Chemical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Mersin University, Mersin, Turkey

    Melis Ozge Alas & Rukan Genc Alturk

  2. Department of Toxicology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Near East University, Nicosia, Cyprus

    Fehmi Burak Alkas & Dilek Battal

  3. Department of Toxicology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Gazi University, Ankara, Turkey

    Ayca Aktas Sukuroglu

  4. Department of Toxicology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Mersin University, Mersin, Turkey

    Dilek Battal

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  1. Melis Ozge Alas
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Alas, M.O., Alkas, F.B., Aktas Sukuroglu, A. et al. Fluorescent carbon dots are the new quantum dots: an overview of their potential in emerging technologies and nanosafety. J Mater Sci 55, 15074–15105 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10853-020-05054-y

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