Muhammad Muzammal Hussain, Fengli Li, Farid Ahmed, Waheed Ullah Khan, and Hai Xiong*
Institute for Advanced study, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, P. R. China
* Correspondence:xhai2001@hotmail.com
The abuse of antibiotics has led to serious environmental pollution and the emergence of drug-resistant bacteria surpassing the replacement rate of antibiotics. Herein, the near-infrared fluorescent carbon dots (NIR-CDs) were developed to meet the requirements for oxytetracycline (OTC) detection in food and water samples (milk, honey, lake water) with a 0.112 µM of limit detection. These NIR-CDs owning excellent water-solubility, deep tissue penetration, and tunable optical properties have a maximum emission at 790 nm (NIR-I window). Different from traditional CDs, these novel NIR-CDs nanoprobes provide a dual response in the presence of OTC (quenching and bathochromic shifting), without obvious interference in biomolecules and metal ions. Additionally, these NIR-CDs exhibit excellent photostability and multi-resistance under UV irradiation, exceptional pH stability (pH 6-12), reliable long-time exposure, and durability in ionic (NaCl) environments. Moreover, NIR-CDs and NIR-CDs@OTC were nontoxic and successfully utilized for cell-imaging applications in normal (NIH3T3) and cancer cells (HeLa).
Graphic Abstract: A nontoxic NIR-CDs nanoprobes provides a dual response in the presence of OTC and successfully utilized for cell-imaging applications in normal (NIH3T3) and cancer cells (HeLa), and the detection in food samples (milk, honey, lake water).
Dr. Muhammad Muzammal Hussain, a post-doc atInstitute for Advanced Study in Shenzhen University is the first author, and Prof. Hai Xiong is the corresponding author.This work is supported by the Science and Technology Innovation Commission of Shenzhen, China (JCYJ20210324095607021), the Special Project of Key Fields of Universities in Guangdong Province, China (2021ZDZX2047), and Guangdong Basic and Applied Basic Research Foundation, China (2021A1515110105).
The research paper linked inDOI: 10.1039/D3TB02139D
Bioimaging-guided Discrimination of Normal/Cancer Cells using Ag+-Mediated Red Fluorescent Carbon Dots
Farid Ahmed, Weiqing Xu, Muhammad Muzammal Hussain, Waheed Ullah Khan, and Hai Xiong*
Institute for Advanced Study, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, 518060, P. R. China.
Corresponding Author Email:hai.xiong@szu.edu.cn
Glutathione (GSH) serves as a significant cancer-related biomarker that plays a pivotal role in preserving intracellular homeostasis. However, the structural and functional similarities between GSH and other biothioles (cysteine and homocysteine), make it difficult to distinguish GSH from them. In this study, we have developed a novel fluorescent probe utilizing silver-mediated red emissive carbon dots (RCDs@Ag+) for the discrimination of cancer cells from normal cells through the bioimaging of glutathione (GSH).The fluorescence intensity of RCDs is quenched significantly upon the addition of Ag+(50 µM) andis recovered 95% with the identical concentration of added GSH, withoutsuch effect occurring incysteine and homocysteine. The fluorescence lifetime of the RCDs was found to be approximately 7.022 ns and the quantum yield was determined to be approximately 9.24%.Further,both RCDs and RCDs@Ag+are suitable for selectively detecting intracellular GSH due to their remarkable excellent biocompatibility, and low toxicity in normal NIH3T3 and HeLa cells.Most significantly, RCDs@Ag+may be used as an excellent approach to spot cancer cells overexpressing GSH.
Graphic Abstract: Ag+-Mediated Red Fluorescent Carbon Dots for Discrimination of Normal/Cancer Cells.
Dr. Farid Ahmed, an associate researcher atInstitute for Advanced Study in Shenzhen University is the first author, and Prof. Hai Xiong is the corresponding author.This work is supported by the Special Project of Key Fields of Universities in Guangdong Province, China (2021ZDZX2047), the Science and Technology Innovation Commission of Shenzhen, China (JCYJ20210324095607021).
