Advances in organelle-targeting carbon dots

Abstract

Lysosomes, mitochondria, and Golgi apparatus are important organelles in cells. Organelle-targeting bioimaging is helpful to efficiently observe the morphology of organelles and plays an important role in investigating the physiological and pathological process of organelles. As a class of zero-dimensional nanomaterials, carbon dots (CDs) have attracted enormous attention in the field of organelle-targeting bioimaging owing to their excellent optical stability, low toxicity, and good biocompatibility. In this review, the synthesis of organelle-targeting CDs (OTCDs) and their research advances in organelle-targeting bioimaging in recent years are summarized and analyzed, and the targeting performance toward lysosomes, mitochondria, and Golgi apparatus is discussed, in order to lay a foundation for establishing a universal targeting mechanism of OTCDs. The opportunities and challenges of OTCDs at the present stage are prospected.