Revisiting the cytotoxicity of quantum dots: an in-depth overview

Revisiting the cytotoxicity of quantum dots: an in-depth overview

Recently, medical research has been shifting its focus to nanomedicine and nanotherapeutics in the pursuit of drug development research. Quantum dots (QDs) are a critical class of nanomaterials due to their unique properties, which include optical, electronic, and engineered biocompatibility in phys...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Biophysical reviews Vol. 12; no. 3; pp. 703 - 718
Main Authors: Nikazar, Sohrab, Sivasankarapillai, Vishnu Sankar, Rahdar, Abbas, Gasmi, Salim, Anumol, P S, Shanavas, Muhammad Salman
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: Berlin/Heidelberg Springer Berlin Heidelberg 01-06-2020
Springer Nature B.V
Subjects:
Biochemistry
Biocompatibility
Biological and Medical Physics
Biological Techniques
Biomedical and Life Sciences
Biomedical materials
Biophysics
Cell Biology
Cytotoxicity
Diagnostic systems
Drug development
Life Sciences
Medical research
Membrane Biology
Nanomaterials
Nanotechnology
Optical properties
Quantum dots
Review
Toxicity
Cytotoxicity
Biocompatibility
Theranostic agents
Biomedical applications
Quantum dots
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Summary:Recently, medical research has been shifting its focus to nanomedicine and nanotherapeutics in the pursuit of drug development research. Quantum dots (QDs) are a critical class of nanomaterials due to their unique properties, which include optical, electronic, and engineered biocompatibility in physiological environments. These properties have made QDs an attractive biomedical resource such that they have found application as both in vitro labeling and in vivo theranostic (therapy-diagnostic) agents. Considerable research has been conducted exploring the suitability of QDs in theranostic applications, but the cytotoxicity of QDs remains an obstacle. Several types of QDs have been investigated over the past decades, which may be suitable for use in biomedical applications if the barrier of cytotoxicity can be resolved. This review attempts to report and analyze the cytotoxicity of the major QDs along with relevant related aspects.
ISSN:1867-2450
1867-2469
DOI:10.1007/s12551-020-00653-0