One-step synthesis of red/green dual-emissive carbon dots for ratiometric sensitive ONOO⁻ probing and cell imaging

Abstract

The synthesis of dual-emissive carbon dots (CDs) with a longer emission wavelength by using a facile strategy is of great importance for the fabrication of ratiometric fluorescent nanoprobes. Herein, red/green dual-emissive carbon dots (RGDE CDs) were synthesized in one step using 2,5-diaminotoluene sulfate (DATS) as a carbon source. The as-prepared RGDE CDs not only exhibited dual emission fluorescence peaks (525 nm, 603 nm) at the single excitation wavelength of 370 nm, but also possessed good water solubility and excellent fluorescence stability. Moreover, the as-prepared RGDE CDs could be directly utilized as a ratiometric fluorescent probe for the determination of trace ONOO- due to the electron transfer process from ONOO- to the excited RGDE CDs. Under optimal conditions, the linear range was 0.03-60 μM with the limit of detection of 11.6 nM. Importantly, this RGDE CD probe could be applied for the detection of intracellular ONOO- with excellent biocompatibility and cellular imaging capability, indicating great promise in biomedical applications.

Red/orange dual-emissive carbon dots for pH sensing and cell imaging

“…S11 in the ESM, it could be seen that the cell viability was estimated to be more than 80% upon the addition of N, S-CDs probe with a wide concentration range of 0-1,000 μg/mL. Hereafter, cell imaging experiments were conducted to further demonstrate the availability of the as-prepared N, S-CDs probe for imaging living 293T cells [29,30]. With the increase of N, S-CDs concentration in the culture medium, gradual increases in the brightness or the intensity of fluorescence images are observed.…”

A Review of Carbon Dots Produced from Biomass Wastes

“…Besides the high quantum yield and adjustable emission wavelength, which are also possessed by traditional semiconductor quantum dots, C-dots have many other excellent characteristics, including good photostability, low cytotoxicity, good biocompatibility, easy surface modification and high chemical inertness, and therefore have attracted considerable scholarly attention in recent years. Hence far, C-dots have been widely used in many fields such as cell imaging [3][4][5], in vivo imaging [6,7], drug delivery [8][9][10], fluorescence sensing [11][12][13], photocatalysis [14][15][16], multicolor light-emitting diode (LED) production [17,18], energy conversion and storage [19][20][21], etc. C-dots are gradually become one of the research hotspots in the above-mentioned fields and considered as a potential substitute for semiconductor quantum dots.…”

Carbon Dots as Fluorescent/Colorimetric Probes for Real-Time Detection of Hypochlorite and Ascorbic Acid in Cells and Body Fluid

“…To date, a number of fluorescent probes have been reported for detecting ROS and AA. − For example, Wang et al synthesized a reversible fluorescent probe, incorporating a 4-amino-2,2,6,6-tetramethyl-piperidin-1-ol group into a 7-nitrobenzoxadiazole (NBD) fluorophore, for monitoring the ClO – /AA redox cycle in living cells . Meanwhile, a colorimetric method was also popular on account of convenience and visibility. − Many colorimetric sensors have been developed for the detection of HOCl/ClO – and AA in biological and environmental samples. − Recently, a fluorescence/colorimetric dual-mode sensor has attracted much attention because it can not only provide highly sensitive fluorescence assay but also facilitate the visualization of targets by naked eyes. So, it is of great importance to develop probes for real-time detection of ClO – or AA by fluorescence and colorimetric manners.…”