Ultra-stable tellurium-doped carbon quantum dots for cell protection and near-infrared photodynamic application

Abstract It is important to regulate the concentration of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in cells since they play important roles in metabolism. Thus, developing nanoreagents to control the ROS is critical. Herein, tellurium-doped carbon quantum dots (Te-CDs) were developed by a simple and efficient hydrothermal method, which can scavenge H2O2 to protect cells under ambient condition, but generate ·OH under 808 nm irradiation as photodynamic application. This contribution presented a kind of novel CDs with dual-functions, which can potentially regulate ROS under different conditions.