Nitrogen-doped Carbon Nanodots for bioimaging and delivery of paclitaxel

Carbon nanodots (CNDs) hold great potential in imaging and drug delivery applications. In this study, nitrogen-doped CNDs (NCNDs) were coupled to the anticancer agent paclitaxel (PTX) through a labile ester bond. NCNDs showed good cell viability and endowed the NCND-PTX conjugate with good water solubility. The hybrid integrates the optical properties of the nanodots with the anticancer function of the drug into a single unit. The cytotoxicity was evaluated in breast, cervix, lung, prostate cancer cell lines by the MTT assay while the cellular uptake was monitored using confocal microscopy. NCND-PTX induced apoptosis in cancer cells exhibiting slightly better anticancer activity compared to the drug alone. Moreover, the course of NCND-PTX interaction with cancer cells was monitored through the xCELLigence system. The NCND-based conjugate represents a promising platform for bioimaging and drug delivery.