Assessment of the biocompatibility and bioimaging potential of fluorescent carbon dots derived from waste biomass

Abstract

The fluorescent carbon dots (C-dots) are attractive platforms in bioimaging, biosensing, and disease detection applications due to their attractive physicochemical characteristics. Herein, we synthesized fluorescent and biocompatible C-dots from banana biomass through heat treatment. The C-dots were soluble in water and showed a fluorescent behavior under UV light (365 nm). The synthesized C-dots demonstrated an excitation-dependent emission behavior with a satisfying quantum yield of 15 %. The C-dots exhibited different functional groups in their structure. The C-dots have no adverse effects on human dermal fibroblast cells (HDFs), indicating their biocompatibility. The C-dots have successfully delivered inside cells and showed fluorescent behavior. These results showed that the prepared materials could potentially explore high-performance bioimaging applications.