Nitrogen Functionalities of Amino-Functionalized Nitrogen-Doped Graphene Quantum Dots for Highly Efficient Enhancement of Antimicrobial Therapy to Eliminate Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus and Utilization as a Contrast Agent

Kuo, Wen-Shuo; Wu, Ping-Ching; Hung, Chi-Yao; Chang, Chia-Yuan; Wang, Jiu-Yao; Chen, Pei-Chi; Hsieh, Miao-Hsi; Lin, Sheng-Han; Chang, Chan-Chi; Lin, Yen-Sung

doi:10.3390/ijms22189695

Open AccessArticle

Nitrogen Functionalities of Amino-Functionalized Nitrogen-Doped Graphene Quantum Dots for Highly Efficient Enhancement of Antimicrobial Therapy to Eliminate Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus and Utilization as a Contrast Agent

by

Wen-Shuo Kuo

^1,2,3,4,†,

Ping-Ching Wu

^5,6,7,8,†,

Chi-Yao Hung

^9,†,

Chia-Yuan Chang

¹⁰

,

Jiu-Yao Wang

^3,4

,

Pei-Chi Chen

^3,4,

Miao-Hsi Hsieh

^3,4,

Sheng-Han Lin

^11,*,

Chan-Chi Chang

^12,* and

Yen-Sung Lin

^13,14,*

¹

School of Chemistry and Materials Science, Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology, Nanjing 210044, China

²

State Key Laboratory for Chemistry and Molecular Engineering of Medicinal Resources, Guangxi Normal University, Guilin 541004, China

³

Allergy & Clinical Immunology Research Center, National Cheng Kung University Hospital, College of Medicine, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan 701, Taiwan

⁴

Allergy Immunology and Microbiome Center, China Medical University Children’s Hospital, China Medical University, Taichung 404, Taiwan

⁵

Department of Biomedical Engineering, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan 701, Taiwan

⁶

Institute of Oral Medicine and Department of Stomatology, National Cheng Kung University Hospital, College of Medicine, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan 701, Taiwan

⁷

Center of Applied Nanomedicine, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan 701, Taiwan

⁸

Medical Device Innovation Center, Taiwan Innovation Center of Medical Devices and Technology, National Cheng Kung University Hospital, College of Medicine, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan 701, Taiwan

⁹

Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, An Nan Hospital, China Medical University, Tainan 709, Taiwan

¹⁰

Department of Mechanical Engineering, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan 701, Taiwan

¹¹

Department of Anesthesiology, E-Da Hospital, Kaohsiung 824, Taiwan

¹²

Department of Otolaryngology, National Cheng Kung University Hospital, College of Medicine, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan 701, Taiwan

¹³

Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine, An Nan Hospital, China Medical University, Tainan 709, Taiwan

¹⁴

Department of Nursing, Chung Hwa University of Medical Technology, Tainan 717, Taiwan

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^*

Authors to whom correspondence should be addressed.

^†

The authors contributed equally to this work.

Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2021, 22(18), 9695; https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms22189695

Submission received: 12 July 2021 / Revised: 1 September 2021 / Accepted: 2 September 2021 / Published: 7 September 2021

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Materials for Photobiology)

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Abstract

There is an urgent need for materials that can efficiently generate reactive oxygen species (ROS) and be used in photodynamic therapy (PDT) as two-photon imaging contrast probes. In this study, graphene quantum dots (GQDs) were subjected to amino group functionalization and nitrogen doping (amino-N-GQDs) via annealing and hydrothermal ammonia autoclave treatments. The synthesized dots could serve as a photosensitizer in PDT and generate more ROS than conventional GQDs under 60-s low-energy (fixed output power: 0.07 W·cm⁻²) excitation exerted by a 670-nm continuous-wave laser. The generated ROS were used to completely eliminate a multidrug-resistant strain of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), a Gram-positive bacterium. Compared with conventional GQDs, the amino-N-GQDs had superior optical properties, including stronger absorption, higher quantum yield (0.34), stronger luminescence, and high stability under exposure. The high photostability and intrinsic luminescence of amino-N-GQDs contribute to their suitability as contrast probes for use in biomedical imaging, in addition to their bacteria tracking and localization abilities. Herein, the dual-modality amino-N-GQDs in PDT easily eliminated multidrug-resistant bacteria, ultimately revealing their potential for use in future clinical applications.

Keywords: graphene quantum dot with nitrogen doping and amino group functionalization; photodynamic therapy; multidrug-resistant methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus; reactive oxygen species; contrast probe

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MDPI and ACS Style

Kuo, W.-S.; Wu, P.-C.; Hung, C.-Y.; Chang, C.-Y.; Wang, J.-Y.; Chen, P.-C.; Hsieh, M.-H.; Lin, S.-H.; Chang, C.-C.; Lin, Y.-S. Nitrogen Functionalities of Amino-Functionalized Nitrogen-Doped Graphene Quantum Dots for Highly Efficient Enhancement of Antimicrobial Therapy to Eliminate Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus and Utilization as a Contrast Agent. Int. J. Mol. Sci. 2021, 22, 9695. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms22189695

AMA Style

Kuo W-S, Wu P-C, Hung C-Y, Chang C-Y, Wang J-Y, Chen P-C, Hsieh M-H, Lin S-H, Chang C-C, Lin Y-S. Nitrogen Functionalities of Amino-Functionalized Nitrogen-Doped Graphene Quantum Dots for Highly Efficient Enhancement of Antimicrobial Therapy to Eliminate Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus and Utilization as a Contrast Agent. International Journal of Molecular Sciences. 2021; 22(18):9695. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms22189695

Chicago/Turabian Style

Kuo, Wen-Shuo, Ping-Ching Wu, Chi-Yao Hung, Chia-Yuan Chang, Jiu-Yao Wang, Pei-Chi Chen, Miao-Hsi Hsieh, Sheng-Han Lin, Chan-Chi Chang, and Yen-Sung Lin. 2021. "Nitrogen Functionalities of Amino-Functionalized Nitrogen-Doped Graphene Quantum Dots for Highly Efficient Enhancement of Antimicrobial Therapy to Eliminate Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus and Utilization as a Contrast Agent" International Journal of Molecular Sciences 22, no. 18: 9695. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms22189695

APA Style

Kuo, W.-S., Wu, P.-C., Hung, C.-Y., Chang, C.-Y., Wang, J.-Y., Chen, P.-C., Hsieh, M.-H., Lin, S.-H., Chang, C.-C., & Lin, Y.-S. (2021). Nitrogen Functionalities of Amino-Functionalized Nitrogen-Doped Graphene Quantum Dots for Highly Efficient Enhancement of Antimicrobial Therapy to Eliminate Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus and Utilization as a Contrast Agent. International Journal of Molecular Sciences, 22(18), 9695. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijms22189695

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Nitrogen Functionalities of Amino-Functionalized Nitrogen-Doped Graphene Quantum Dots for Highly Efficient Enhancement of Antimicrobial Therapy to Eliminate Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus and Utilization as a Contrast Agent

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