Synthesis of highly fluorescent, amine-functionalized carbon dots from biotin-modified chitosan and silk-fibroin blend for target-specific delivery of antitumor agents

• Published in: Carbohydrate polymers Vol. 277; p. 118862
• Main Authors: Horo, Himali, Saha, Muktashree, Das, Himadree, Mandal, Bishnupada, Kundu, Lal Mohan
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England Elsevier Ltd 01.02.2022
• Subjects: Amine-functionalization; Amines - chemistry; Antimetabolites, Antineoplastic - chemistry; Antimetabolites, Antineoplastic - pharmacology; Biotin; Biotin - chemistry; Carbon - chemistry; Carbon dots; Cell Proliferation - drug effects; Cell Survival - drug effects; Cells, Cultured; Chitosan; Chitosan - chemistry; Drug Delivery Systems; Drug Liberation; Drug Screening Assays, Antitumor; Fibroins - chemistry; Fluorescence; Fluorouracil - chemistry; Fluorouracil - pharmacology; High quantum yield; Humans; Molecular Structure; Optical Imaging; Particle Size; Quantum Dots - chemistry; Silk fibroin; Spectrometry, Fluorescence; Silk fibroin; Biotin; Carbon dots; Chitosan; Amine-functionalization; High quantum yield
• ISSN: 0144-8617; 1879-1344
• DOI: 10.1016/j.carbpol.2021.118862

Carbon dots (CDs) have been a promising theranostic tool with high biocompatibility and a tailorable fluorescence profile. Herein, we report the synthesis of highly fluorescent amine-functionalized CDs from low molecular weight chitosan (LMWC) and silk-fibroin (SF) blends. The synthesized CDs were quasi-spherical in shape with a size of 3 ± 1.5 nm. A significant increase in fluorescent intensity and quantum yield was achieved upon increasing the SF content due to nitrogen doping. For inducing target specificity to cancer cells, biotin was covalently conjugated to the CDs, and the conjugation was determined by FTIR spectroscopy. The conjugate was further loaded with 5-fluorouracil (5-FU) as a model anti-cancer drug. The MTT assay showed increased cytotoxicity of the conjugated CDs in cancer cells compared to normal cells. The live-cell imaging in MCF-7 cell lines showed bright blue-colored fluorescence and increased internalization of the conjugated CDs than the non-conjugate ones due to receptor-mediated endocytosis. [Display omitted]