Open Access Open Access  Restricted Access Subscription Access
Open Access Open Access Open Access  Restricted Access Restricted Access Subscription Access

Graphene Quantum Dots: A Pharmaceutical Review


Affiliations
1 Department of Pharmaceutics, Ashokrao Mane Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Research, Save Maharashtra, 416213, India
2 Department of Pharmaceutics, Bharati Vidyapeeth College of Pharmacy, Kolhapur, Maharashtra, 416013 Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Y.D. Mane Institute of Pharmacy Kagal, India
     

   Subscribe/Renew Journal


Quantum dots (QDs) possess exclusive physicochemical and optical properties which are suitable for devices like, optoelectronic devices, light-emitting diodes, and photovoltaic cells. Compared to the selenium and tellurium/metasulfide- based QDs, graphene quantum dots (GQDs) are less toxic and have more biocompatibility, these properties make them ideal candidates for the application in various fields like, drug delivery agents, bio-imaging, therapeutics, and theranostics. Different types of methods for the synthesis of GQDs like top-down and bottom-up methods are systematically deliberated in this study. Different physicochemical, optical, and biological properties are included in this particular text. These properties include size- and chemical-composition-dependent fluorescence, therapeutics, cellular toxicity, disease diagnostics, and biocompatibility. At last, predictions and possible directions of GQDs in drug delivery and bioimaging systems are deliberated concerning challenges such as synthesis, biocompatibility, and cellular toxicity.


Keywords

Bioimaging, Graphene Quantum Dots, Nanostructured graphene, Optical properties, Photoluminescence, Quantum dots
Subscription Login to verify subscription
User
Notifications
Font Size


  • Chan WC, Maxwell DJ, Gao X, Bailey RE, Han M, Nie S. Luminescent quantum dots for multiplexed biological detection and imaging. Current opinion in biotechnology. 2002 Feb 1; 13(1):40-6.
  • Liang JG, Ai XP, He ZK, Pang DW. Functionalized CdSe quantum dots as selective silver ion chemodosimeter. Analyst. 2004; 129(7):619-22.
  • Li J, Zhu JJ. Quantum dots for fluorescent biosensing and bio- imaging applications. Analyst. 2013; 138(9):2506-15.
  • Ladd TD, Jelezko F, Laflamme R, Nakamura Y, Monroe C, O’Brien JL. Quantum computers. nature. 2010 Mar;464(7285):45- 53.
  • Harman TL, Tittel FK, Graf JC, Bakhirkin Y. Development of Quantum-Cascade Laser based biosensor technology. Y2003 Annual Report. 2004:59.
  • Cheng X, Lowe SB, Reece PJ, Gooding JJ. Colloidal silicon quantum dots: from preparation to the modification of self- assembled monolayers (SAMs) for bio-applications. Chemical Society Reviews. 2014;43(8):2680-700.¬¬
  • Wagner AM, Knipe JM, Orive G, Peppas NA. Quantum dots in biomedical applications. Acta biomaterialia. 2019 Aug 1;94:44-63.
  • Le XH, Pham NT, Dao NT, Laverdant J, Nguyen HY, Phan NH, Pham TN. Colloidal nitrogen-doped graphene quantum dots: Raman spectra, photoluminescence maps and radiative lifetimes. InSymposium venue (p. 88).
  • Shen J, Zhu Y, Yang X, Li C. Graphene quantum dots: emergent nanolights for bioimaging, sensors, catalysis and photovoltaic devices. Chemical communications. 2012;48(31):3686-99.
  • Fan Z, Li S, Yuan F, Fan L. Fluorescent graphene quantum dots for biosensing and bioimaging. Rsc Advances. 2015;5(25):19773- 89.
  • Henna TK, Pramod K. Graphene quantum dots redefine nanobiomedicine. Materials Science and Engineering: C. 2020 May 1;110:110651.
  • Volkov Y. Quantum dots in nanomedicine: recent trends, advances and unresolved issues. Biochemical and biophysical research communications. 2015 Dec 18;468(3):419-27.
  • Biswas MC, Islam MT, Nandy PK, Hossain MM. Graphene quantum dots (GQDs) for bioimaging and drug delivery applications: a review. ACS Materials Letters. 2021 May 26;3(6):889-911.
  • Das P, Ganguly S, Banerjee S, Das NC. Graphene based emergent nanolights: a short review on the synthesis, properties and application. Research on Chemical Intermediates. 2019 Jul;45(7):3823-53.
  • Mei Q, Liu B, Han G, Liu R, Han MY, Zhang Z. Graphene oxide: from tunable structures to diverse luminescence behaviors. Advanced science. 2019 Jul;6(14):1900855.
  • Khan U, O'Neill A, Lotya M, De S, Coleman JN. High‐concentration solvent exfoliation of graphene. small. 2010 Apr 9;6(7):864-71.
  • Bacon M, Bradley SJ, Nann T. Graphene quantum dots. Particle & Particle Systems Characterization. 2014 Apr;31(4):415-28.
  • Tian P, Tang L, Teng KS, Lau SP. Graphene quantum dots from chemistry to applications. Materials today chemistry. 2018 Dec 1;10:221-58.
  • YanY,GongJ,ChenJ,ZengZ,HuangW,PuK,LiuJ,ChenP. Recent advances on graphene quantum dots: from chemistry and physics to applications. Advanced Materials. 2019 May;31(21):1808283.
  • Perini G, Palmieri V, Ciasca G, De Spirito M, Papi M. Unravelling the potential of graphene quantum dots in biomedicine and neuroscience. International journal of molecular sciences. 2020 Jan;21(10):3712.
  • Shen J, Zhu Y, Yang X, Zong J, Zhang J, Li C. One-pot hydrothermal synthesis of graphene quantum dots surface- passivated by polyethylene glycol and their photoelectric conversion under near-infrared light. New Journal of Chemistry. 2012;36(1):97-101.
  • Luo P, Guan X, Yu Y, Li X, Yan F. Hydrothermal synthesis of graphene quantum dots supported on three-dimensional graphene for supercapacitors. Nanomaterials. 2019 Feb;9(2):201.
  • Hoang TT, Pham HP, Tran QT. A facile microwave-assisted hydrothermal synthesis of graphene quantum dots for organic solar cell efficiency improvement. Journal of Nanomaterials. 2020 Feb 11;2020.
  • Kundu S, Pillai VK. Synthesis and characterization of graphene quantum dots. Physical Sciences Reviews. 2020 Apr 1;5(4).
  • Tang L, Ji R, Li X, Teng KS, Lau SP. Size‐dependent structural and optical characteristics of glucose‐derived graphene quantum dots. Particle & Particle Systems Characterization. 2013 Jun;30(6):523-31.
  • Luo Z, Qi G, Chen K, Zou M, Yuwen L, Zhang X, Huang W, Wang L. Microwave‐assisted preparation of white fluorescent graphene quantum dots as a novel phosphor for enhanced white‐light‐emitting diodes. Advanced Functional Materials. 2016 Apr;26(16):2739-44.
  • Hou X, Li Y, Zhao C. Microwave-assisted synthesis of nitrogen- doped multi-layer graphene quantum dots with oxygen-rich functional groups. Australian Journal of Chemistry. 2015 Sep 22;69(3):357-60.
  • Yoshinaga T, Iso Y, Isobe T. Optimizing the microwave-assisted hydrothermal synthesis of blue-emitting L-cysteine-derived carbon dots. Journal of Luminescence. 2019 Sep 1;213:6-14.
  • Puddy RK, Chua CJ, Buitelaar MR. Transport spectroscopy of a graphene quantum dot fabricated by atomic force microscope nanolithography. Applied Physics Letters. 2013 Oct 28;103(18):183117.
  • Peng J, Gao W, Gupta BK, Liu Z, Romero-Aburto R, Ge L, Song L, Alemany LB, Zhan X, Gao G, Vithayathil SA. Graphene quantum dots derived from carbon fibers. Nano letters. 2012 Feb 8;12(2):844-9.
  • Sun H, Wu L, Wei W, Qu X. Recent advances in graphene quantum dots for sensing. Materials today. 2013 Nov 1;16(11):433-42.
  • Shaari N, Kamarudin SK, Bahru R. Carbon and graphene quantum dots in fuel cell application: An overview. International Journal of Energy Research. 2021 Feb;45(2):1396-424.
  • Chen W, Lv G, Hu W, Li D, Chen S, Dai Z. Synthesis and applications of graphene quantum dots: a review. Nanotechnology Reviews. 2018 Apr 1;7(2):157-85.
  • SuJ,ZhangX,TongX,WangX,YangP,YaoF,GuoR,YuanC. Preparation of graphene quantum dots with high quantum yield by a facile one-step method and applications for cell imaging. Materials Letters. 2020 Jul 15;271:127806.
  • Wang CC, Lu SY. Carbon black-derived graphene quantum dots composited with carbon aerogel as a highly efficient and stable reduction catalyst for the iodide/tri-iodide couple. Nanoscale. 2015;7(3):1209-15.
  • Madni A, Noreen S, Maqbool I, Rehman F, Batool A, Kashif PM, Rehman M, Tahir N, Khan MI. Graphene-based nanocomposites: synthesis and their theranostic applications. Journal of Drug Targeting. 2018 Nov 26;26(10):858-83.
  • Ananthanarayanan A, Wang X, Routh P, Sana B, Lim S, Kim DH, Lim KH, Li J, Chen P. Facile synthesis of graphene quantum dots from 3D graphene and their application for Fe3+ sensing. Advanced Functional Materials. 2014 May;24(20):3021-6.
  • Wang L, Zhu SJ, Wang HY, Qu SN, Zhang YL, Zhang JH, Chen QD, Xu HL, Han W, Yang B, Sun HB. Common origin of green luminescence in carbon nanodots and graphene quantum dots. ACS nano. 2014 Mar 25;8(3):2541-7.
  • Huang H, Yang S, Li Q, Yang Y, Wang G, You X, Mao B, Wang H, Ma Y, He P, Liu Z. Electrochemical cutting in weak aqueous electrolytes: the strategy for efficient and controllable preparation of graphene quantum dots. Langmuir. 2018 Jan 9;34(1):250-8.
  • Zhang Z, Zhang J, Chen N, Qu L. Graphene quantum dots: an emerging material for energy-related applications and beyond. Energy & Environmental Science. 2012;5(10):8869-90.
  • Lu L, Zhu Y, Shi C, Pei YT. Large-scale synthesis of defect- selective graphene quantum dots by ultrasonic-assisted liquid- phase exfoliation. Carbon. 2016 Nov 1;109:373-83.
  • Zdrazil L, Zahradnicek R, Mohan R, Sedlacek P, Nejdl L, Schmiedova V, Pospisil J, Horak M, Weiter M, Zmeskal O, Hubalek J. Preparation of graphene quantum dots through liquid phase exfoliation method. Journal of Luminescence. 2018 Dec 1;204:203-8.
  • Ciesielski A, Haar S, Aliprandi A, El Garah M, Tregnago G, Cotella GF, El Gemayel M, Richard F, Sun H, Cacialli F, Bonaccorso F. Modifying the size of ultrasound-induced liquid- phase exfoliated graphene: from nanosheets to nanodots. ACS nano. 2016 Dec 27;10(12):10768-77.
  • Zhang YM, Zhang J, Zhu ZQ, Liu QJ. Low-cost preparation of graphene quantum dots by liquid-phase exfoliation of carbon fibers. InMaterials Science Forum 2016 (Vol. 852, pp. 489-495). Trans Tech Publications Ltd.
  • Facure MH, Schneider R, Mercante LA, Correa DS. A review on graphene quantum dots and their nanocomposites: from laboratory synthesis towards agricultural and environmental applications. Environmental Science: Nano. 2020;7(12):3710-34.
  • Shinde DB, Pillai VK. Electrochemical preparation of luminescent graphene quantum dots from multiwalled carbon nanotubes. Chemistry–A European Journal. 2012 Sep 24;18(39):12522-8.
  • Ramachandran S, Sathishkumar M, Kothurkar NK, Senthilkumar R. Synthesis and characterization of graphene quantum dots/cobalt ferrite nanocomposite. InIOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering 2018 Feb 1 (Vol. 310, No. 1, p. 012139). IOP Publishing.
  • Samuei S, Fakkar J, Rezvani Z, Shomali A, Habibi B. Synthesis and characterization of graphene quantum dots/CoNiAl-layered double-hydroxide nanocomposite: Application as a glucose sensor. Analytical biochemistry. 2017 Mar 15;521:31-9.
  • Safardoust-Hojaghan H, Salavati-Niasari M. Degradation of methylene blue as a pollutant with N-doped graphene quantum dot/titanium dioxide nanocomposite. Journal of Cleaner Production. 2017 Apr 1;148:31-6.
  • Wu J, Wang P, Wang F, Fang Y. Investigation of the microstructures of graphene quantum dots (GQDs) by surface- enhanced Raman spectroscopy. Nanomaterials. 2018 Oct;8(10):864.
  • Rajender G, Giri PK. Formation mechanism of graphene quantum dots and their edge state conversion probed by photoluminescence and Raman spectroscopy. Journal of Materials Chemistry C. 2016;4(46):10852-65.
  • More MP , Lohar PH, Patil AG, Patil PO, Deshmukh PK. Controlled synthesis of blue luminescent graphene quantum dots from carbonized citric acid: Assessment of methodology, stability, and fluorescence in an aqueous environment. Materials Chemistry and Physics. 2018 Dec 1;220:11-22.
  • Liu X, Han J, Hou X, Altincicek F, Oncel N, Pierce D, Wu X, Zhao JX. One-pot synthesis of graphene quantum dots using humic acid and its application for copper (II) ion detection. Journal of Materials Science. 2021 Mar;56(8):4991-5005.
  • Zhang Z, Fang C, Bing X, Lei Y. Graphene quantum dots-ZnS nanocomposites with improved photoelectric performances. Materials. 2018 Apr;11(4):512.
  • Roding M, Bradley SJ, Nydén M, Nann T. Fluorescence lifetime analysis of graphene quantum dots. The Journal of Physical Chemistry C. 2014 Dec 26;118(51):30282-90.
  • Ju J, Chen W. Synthesis of highly fluorescent nitrogen-doped graphene quantum dots for sensitive, label-free detection of Fe (III) in aqueous media. Biosensors and bioelectronics. 2014 Aug 15;58:219-25.
  • Baweja H, Jeet K. Economical and green synthesis of graphene and carbon quantum dots from agricultural waste. Materials Research Express. 2019 Jun 19;6(8):0850g8.
  • ZhangW,LiuY,MengX,DingT,XuY,XuH,RenY,LiuB, Huang J, Yang J, Fang X. Graphenol defects induced blue emission enhancement in chemically reduced graphene quantum dots. Physical Chemistry Chemical Physics. 2015;17(34):22361-6.
  • Luo Q, Zhong Z, Zheng Y, Gao D, Xia Z, Wang L. Preparation and evaluation of a poly (N-isopropylacrylamide) derived graphene quantum dots based hydrophilic interaction and reversed- phase mixed-mode stationary phase for complex sample analysis. Talanta. 2021 Mar 1;224:121869.
  • Tajik S, Dourandish Z, Zhang K, Beitollahi H, Van Le Q, Jang HW, Shokouhimehr M. Carbon and graphene quantum dots: A review on syntheses, characterization, biological and sensing applications for neurotransmitter determination. RSC Advances. 2020;10(26):15406-29.
  • Liu Y, Xu LP, Wang Q, Yang B, Zhang X. Synergistic inhibitory effect of GQDs–tramiprosate covalent binding on amyloid aggregation. ACS Chemical Neuroscience. 2017 Dec 15;9(4):817- 23.
  • Kim D, Yoo JM, Hwang H, Lee J, Lee SH, Yun SP, Park MJ, Lee M, Choi S, Kwon SH, Lee S. Graphene quantum dots prevent α- synucleinopathy in Parkinson’s disease. Nature nanotechnology. 2018 Sep;13(9):812-8.
  • Guo JL, Lee VM. Neurofibrillary tangle-like tau pathology induced by synthetic tau fibrils in primary neurons over-expressing mutant tau. FEBS letters. 2013 Mar 18;587(6):717-23.
  • Volarevic V, Paunovic V, Markovic Z, Simovic Markovic B, Misirkic-Marjanovic M, Todorovic-Markovic B, Bojic S, Vucicevic L, Jovanovic S, Arsenijevic N, Holclajtner-Antunovic I. Large graphene quantum dots alleviate immune-mediated liver damage. Acs Nano. 2014 Dec 23;8(12):12098-109.
  • Wang X, Ning Q. Immune mediated liver failure. EXCLI journal. 2014;13:1131.
  • Kumawat MK, Thakur M, Gurung RB, Srivastava R. Graphene quantum dots for cell proliferation, nucleus imaging, and photoluminescent sensing applications. Scientific reports. 2017 Nov 20;7(1):1-6.
  • Liu J, Rojas-Andrade MD, Chata G, Peng Y, Roseman G, Lu JE, Millhauser GL, Saltikov C, Chen S. Photo-enhanced antibacterial activity of ZnO/graphene quantum dot nanocomposites. Nanoscale. 2018;10(1):158-66.
  • Ristic BZ, Milenkovic MM, Dakic IR, Todorovic-Markovic BM, Milosavljevic MS, Budimir MD, Paunovic VG, Dramicanin MD, Markovic ZM, Trajkovic VS. Photodynamic antibacterial effect of graphene quantum dots. Biomaterials. 2014 May 1;35(15):4428- 35.
  • George D, Suri A, Dutta K, Nayak S. Targeted Drug Delivery Using Graphene Quantum Dots: Approaches, Limitations and Future Perspectives. ECS Transactions. 2022 Apr 24;107(1):16081.
  • Abbas A, Tabish TA, Bull SJ, Lim TM, Phan AN. High yield synthesis of graphene quantum dots from biomass waste as a highly selective probe for Fe3+ sensing. Scientific reports. 2020 Dec 4;10(1):1-6.
  • Lu H, Li W, Dong H, Wei M. Graphene quantum dots for optical bioimaging. Small. 2019 Sep;15(36):1902136.
  • Iannazzo D, Pistone A, Salamò M, Galvagno S, Romeo R, Giofré SV, Branca C, Visalli G, Di Pietro A. Graphene quantum dots for cancer targeted drug delivery. International journal of pharmaceutics. 2017 Feb 25;518(1-2):185-92.
  • Wang X, Sun X, Lao J, He H, Cheng T, Wang M, Wang S, Huang F. Multifunctional graphene quantum dots for simultaneous targeted cellular imaging and drug delivery. Colloids and Surfaces B: Biointerfaces. 2014 Oct 1;122:638-44.
  • Alsaab HO, Alghamdi MS, Alotaibi AS, Alzhrani R, Alwuthaynani F, Althobaiti YS, Almalki AH, Sau S, Iyer AK. Progress in clinical trials of photodynamic therapy for solid tumors and the role of nanomedicine. Cancers. 2020 Oct;12(10):2793.
  • Fan HY, Yu XH, Wang K, Yin YJ, Tang YJ, Tang YL, Liang XH. Graphene quantum dots (GQDs)-based nanomaterials for improving photodynamic therapy in cancer treatment. European journal of medicinal chemistry. 2019 Nov 15;182:111620.
  • Dougherty TJ, Gomer CJ, Henderson BW, Jori G, Kessel D, korbelik M, Moan J, Peng Q. Photodynamic therapy. JNCI: journal of the national cancer institute. 1998 Jun 17;90(12):889-905.
  • McCaughan JS. Photodynamic therapy. Drugs & aging. 1999 Jul;15(1):49-68.
  • Dolmans DE, Fukumura D, Jain RK. Photodynamic therapy for cancer. Nature reviews cancer. 2003 May;3(5):380-7.
  • LiuH,LiC,QianY,HuL,FangJ,TongW,NieR,ChenQ, Wang H. Magnetic-induced graphene quantum dots for imaging- guided photothermal therapy in the second near-infrared window. Biomaterials. 2020 Feb 1;232:119700.
  • Yao X, Niu X, Ma K, Huang P, Grothe J, Kaskel S, Zhu Y. Graphene quantum dots‐capped magnetic mesoporous silica nanoparticles as a multifunctional platform for controlled drug delivery, magnetic hyperthermia, and photothermal therapy. Small. 2017 Jan;13(2):1602225.
  • WangH,MuQ,WangK,ReviaRA,YenC,GuX,TianB,LiuJ, Zhang M. Nitrogen and boron dual-doped graphene quantum dots for near-infrared second window imaging and photothermal therapy. Applied materials today. 2019 Mar 1;14:108-17.
  • Indranil Singh. A Review on in-Vivo Imaging of Cancer Cells by Bioconjugated Quantum Dots. Asian J. Pharm. Res. 2018; 8(4): 243-248.
  • Anita S. Godase, Nayana V. Pimpodkar, Yogita R. Indalkar. An Overview on A Pyrazole: Promising Moiety. Asian J. Pharm. Tech. 2015; Vol. 5(4) 201-213.
  • Sanket Rathod, Ketaki Shinde, Namdeo Shinde, Nagesh Aloorkar. Cosmeceuticals and Nanotechnology in Beauty Care Products. Research Journal of Topical and Cosmetic Sciences. 2021; 12(2):93-1.
  • Vaidiyanathan. R, B. Anand. Opto chemical Transducers of GaInN Quantum glowing structure of Biosensor and Chemical Sensors for Health Care System. Research J. Pharm. and Tech 2017; 10(12): 4362-4364.
  • Dipti Bhave, Snehal Deshpande, Upendra Dabholkar. Surfactants as Quantum Dots used in Bio-Imaging.Research J. Science and Tech. 2018; 10(3):188-196.
  • Sanket Rathod, Sneha Mali, Namdeo Shinde, Nagesh Aloorkar. Cosmeceuticals and Beauty Care Products: Current trends with future prospects. Research J. Topical and Cosmetic Sci. 2020; 11(1):45-51.

Abstract Views: 284

PDF Views: 0




  • Graphene Quantum Dots: A Pharmaceutical Review

Abstract Views: 284  |  PDF Views: 0

Authors

Shital Shinde
Department of Pharmaceutics, Ashokrao Mane Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Research, Save Maharashtra, 416213, India
Aniket Patil
Department of Pharmaceutics, Ashokrao Mane Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Research, Save Maharashtra, 416213, India
Ravindra Gaikwad
Department of Pharmaceutics, Bharati Vidyapeeth College of Pharmacy, Kolhapur, Maharashtra, 416013 Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Y.D. Mane Institute of Pharmacy Kagal, India

Abstract


Quantum dots (QDs) possess exclusive physicochemical and optical properties which are suitable for devices like, optoelectronic devices, light-emitting diodes, and photovoltaic cells. Compared to the selenium and tellurium/metasulfide- based QDs, graphene quantum dots (GQDs) are less toxic and have more biocompatibility, these properties make them ideal candidates for the application in various fields like, drug delivery agents, bio-imaging, therapeutics, and theranostics. Different types of methods for the synthesis of GQDs like top-down and bottom-up methods are systematically deliberated in this study. Different physicochemical, optical, and biological properties are included in this particular text. These properties include size- and chemical-composition-dependent fluorescence, therapeutics, cellular toxicity, disease diagnostics, and biocompatibility. At last, predictions and possible directions of GQDs in drug delivery and bioimaging systems are deliberated concerning challenges such as synthesis, biocompatibility, and cellular toxicity.


Keywords


Bioimaging, Graphene Quantum Dots, Nanostructured graphene, Optical properties, Photoluminescence, Quantum dots

References