Carbon Dot-Based Platform for Simultaneous Bacterial Distinguishment and Antibacterial Applications

Abstract

In this work, we prepared quaternized carbon dots (CDs) with simultaneous antibacterial and bacterial differentiation capabilities using a simple carboxyl-amine reaction between lauryl betaine and amine-functionalized CDs. The obtained quaternized CDs have several fascinating properties/abilities: (1) A long fluorescence emission wavelength ensures the exceptional bacterial imaging capability, including the super-resolution imaging ability; (2) the polarity-sensitive fluorescence emission property leads to significantly enhanced fluorescence when the quaternized CDs interact with bacteria; (3) the presence of both hydrophobic hydrocarbon chains and positively charged quaternary ammonium groups makes the CDs selectively attach to Gram-positive bacteria, realizing the bacterial differentiation; (4) excellent antimicrobial activity is seen against Gram-positive bacteria with a minimum inhibitory concentration of 8 μg/mL for Staphylococcus aureus. Besides, the quaternized CDs are highly stable in various aqueous solutions and exhibit negligible cytotoxicity, suggesting that they hold great promise for clinical applications. Compared to the traditional Gram staining method, the selective Gram-positive bacterial imaging achieved by the quaternized CDs provides a much simpler and faster method for bacterial differentiation. In summary, by combining selective Gram-positive bacterial recognition, super-resolution imaging, and exceptional antibacterial activity into a single system, the quaternized CDs represent a novel kind of metal-free nanoparticle-based antibiotics for antibacterial application and a new type of reagent for efficient bacterial differentiation.