Abstract

Doxorubicin entrapped carbon dots (DOX-CDs) were prepared for bioimaging and enhanced intracellular drug delivery. The CDs were synthesized via the hydrothermal method using citrate and urea under 200 °C for 1 h. Then, DOX was successfully conjugated on the CDs via physicochemical interactions. The DOX-CDs exhibited good crystal structure, remarkable aqueous stability, excellent photoluminescence property, and a high quantum yield of 93%. The fluorescent images revealed that the DOX-CDs could be readily taken up by the cancer cells for cell labeling. Furthermore, endo-lysosomal pH-assisted DOX release behavior was observed from DOX-CDs, and the cytotoxicity of DOX-CDs was confirmed by the MTS assay against H0-8910 ovarian cancer cells. In addition, the CDs indicated bright fluorescent signal in the animal imaging test and demonstrated low toxicity after administration for 7 and 21 days. Therefore, the prepared CDs could be a promising imaging probe for biomedical imaging and intracellular drug delivery.

Details

Title
The Cost-Effective Preparation of Green Fluorescent Carbon Dots for Bioimaging and Enhanced Intracellular Drug Delivery
Author
Sun, Yuqing 1 ; Zheng Shaohui 2 ; Liu, Long 1 ; Kong, Ying 1 ; Zhang Aiwei 3 ; Xu, Kai 2 ; Han, Cuiping 2 

 Xuzhou Medical University, School of Medical Imaging, Xuzhou, People’s Republic of China (GRID:grid.417303.2) (ISNI:0000 0000 9927 0537) 
 Xuzhou Medical University, School of Medical Imaging, Xuzhou, People’s Republic of China (GRID:grid.417303.2) (ISNI:0000 0000 9927 0537); Affiliated Hospital of Xuzhou Medical University, Department of Radiology, Xuzhou, People’s Republic of China (GRID:grid.413389.4) 
 Affiliated Hospital of Xuzhou Medical University, Department of Radiology, Xuzhou, People’s Republic of China (GRID:grid.413389.4) 
Publication year
2020
Publication date
Dec 2020
Publisher
Springer Nature B.V.
ISSN
19317573
e-ISSN
1556276X
Source type
Scholarly Journal
Language of publication
English
ProQuest document ID
2371195615
Copyright
Nanoscale Research Letters is a copyright of Springer, (2020). All Rights Reserved. This work is published under http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ (the “License”). Notwithstanding the ProQuest Terms and Conditions, you may use this content in accordance with the terms of the License.