The structural characteristics and mechanisms of antimicrobial carbon dots: a mini review

Abstract

Overuse of antibiotics in agricultural production and medical practices has led to the rapid development of drug-resistant bacteria worldwide, and the emergence of superbacteria has increased the mortality rate of diseases and seriously threatened human life and health. The development of new antibiotics is slow, and resistant bacteria will soon emerge. The substitution of antibiotics with other antimicrobials is, therefore, strongly encouraged. Vaccine development for emerging viruses is slow and has low efficacy. As a new member of the nanomaterial family, carbon dots (CDs) have the advantages of photoluminescence, easy surface functionalization modification, simple preparation, low toxicity, low side effects, and lower probability to develop resistance, showing great antibacterial and antiviral potential. This review summarizes the structural characteristics of CDs with antimicrobial properties and the mechanism of CDs against different types of microorganisms, expecting to provide valuable information for the purposeful synthesis of antimicrobial CDs effective against specific microorganisms in the future.