Carbon dots derived from traditional Chinese medicines: a novel therapeutic strategy for ocular diseases
- 1Scientific Research Department, Inner Mongolia Fourth Hospital (Chest Hospital)
- 2Department of Clinical Research and Translational Medicine, Inner Mongolia People’s Hospital
- 3Department of Ophthalmology, Inner Mongolia International Hospital of Mongolian Medicine
Abstract
Carbon dots (CDs) represent a novel category of zero-dimensional carbon-based nanomaterials featuring favorable biosafety in vitro and in acute animal studies. They also exhibit distinctive optical properties and diverse pharmacological activities. Synthesized via eco-friendly green routes using traditional Chinese medicines (TCMs) and their extracts, TCM-derived carbon dots (TCM-CDs) display distinct properties compared to conventional nanocarriers. Benefiting from their inherent nanostructures, abundant surface functional groups, and nanozyme-like activity, TCM-CDs can deliver intrinsic therapeutic effects without loading exogenous drugs or relying on residual herbal ingredients. They possess multiple bioactivities, including antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antibacterial and neuroprotective effects, which make them potential non-invasive therapeutic candidates for refractory ocular disorders. A growing body of studies has validated the promising therapeutic efficacy of TCM-CDs in animal models against autoimmune uveitis, retinal lesions, and optic nerve injuries, highlighting their encouraging preclinical findings that warrant further investigation toward clinical translation. Focusing on the intrinsic therapeutic capacity of TCM-CDs, this review systematically summarizes their core functional mechanisms and research progress in ocular disease intervention, discusses prevailing academic controversies and unresolved research bottlenecks in this field, and proposes prospective developmental directions. This work intends to offer comprehensive theoretical evidence and guidance directions for subsequent mechanistic investigations and clinical translation of TCM-CDs in ophthalmic research.
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BibTeX
@article{yang2026carbon,
title = {{Carbon dots derived from traditional Chinese medicines: a novel therapeutic strategy for ocular diseases}},
author = {Tingyu Yang and Zongqi Feng and Xiao Zhang and Lihui Zhang and Yu Su and Ruihua Liu and Rina Sa and Lamusi A},
journal = {Frontiers in Pharmacology},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.3389/fphar.2026.1912653},
url = {https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fphar.2026.1912653/full},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Carbon dots derived from traditional Chinese medicines: a novel therapeutic strategy for ocular diseases
AU - Tingyu Yang
AU - Zongqi Feng
AU - Xiao Zhang
AU - Lihui Zhang
AU - Yu Su
AU - Ruihua Liu
AU - Rina Sa
AU - Lamusi A
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/14
JO - Frontiers in Pharmacology
DO - 10.3389/fphar.2026.1912653
UR - https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fphar.2026.1912653/full
AB - Carbon dots (CDs) represent a novel category of zero-dimensional carbon-based nanomaterials featuring favorable biosafety in vitro and in acute animal studies. They also exhibit distinctive optical properties and diverse pharmacological activities. Synthesized via eco-friendly green routes using traditional Chinese medicines (TCMs) and their extracts, TCM-derived carbon dots (TCM-CDs) display distinct properties compared to conventional nanocarriers. Benefiting from their inherent nanostructures, abundant surface functional groups, and nanozyme-like activity, TCM-CDs can deliver intrinsic therapeutic effects without loading exogenous drugs or relying on residual herbal ingredients. They possess multiple bioactivities, including antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antibacterial and neuroprotective effects, which make them potential non-invasive therapeutic candidates for refractory ocular disorders. A growing body of studies has validated the promising therapeutic efficacy of TCM-CDs in animal models against autoimmune uveitis, retinal lesions, and optic nerve injuries, highlighting their encouraging preclinical findings that warrant further investigation toward clinical translation. Focusing on the intrinsic therapeutic capacity of TCM-CDs, this review systematically summarizes their core functional mechanisms and research progress in ocular disease intervention, discusses prevailing academic controversies and unresolved research bottlenecks in this field, and proposes prospective developmental directions. This work intends to offer comprehensive theoretical evidence and guidance directions for subsequent mechanistic investigations and clinical translation of TCM-CDs in ophthalmic research.
SN - 1663-9812
ER -