Hydrothermal Synthesis of Water-Dispersible Fluorescent Carbon Dots from Renewable Plant Precursors: Antibacterial Activity and Comparative Characterization
- 1Bar-Ilan Institute of Nanotechnology & Advanced Materials (BINA), Bar Ilan University, Ramat Gan 5290002, Israel
- 2Faculty of Engineering, School of Biomedical Engineering, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv 6997801, Israel
Abstract
We present here a one-pot hydrothermal synthesis of fluorescent carbon dots (CDs) using olive, rosemary, sage, and thyme leaves as a carbon source. The hydrothermal reaction was conducted at 180 °C for 12 h, thereby converting biomass into water-dispersible CDs without a passivating agent. The average size of the CDs, determined by TEM, was 3–6 nm, with a spherical morphology. All synthesized CDs displayed excitation-dependent fluorescence, with emission maxima at 400–440 nm (blue) with excitation at 340–370 nm. FLIM measurements yielded similar fluorescence lifetimes of approximately 5 ns in aqueous solutions of CDs. FTIR spectra indicated surface hydroxyl and nitrogen-containing functionalities that may contribute to photoluminescence. The antibacterial activity of the as-synthesized CDs against a panel of Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria (Staphylococcus aureus, Listeria innocua, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA), multidrug-resistant (MDR) E. coli, and Klebsiella pneumoniae (MDR)) was investigated. It was shown that biomass-derived CDs exhibit antibacterial activity, being more effective against Gram-positive bacteria, with MIC values as low as 0.625 mg/mL for olive-, rosemary-, and thyme-derived CDs against S. aureus and MRSA. These findings suggest that the developed CDs are fluorescent materials offering viable possibilities in biomedical research, as well as antimicrobial agents.
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BibTeX
@article{dudchenko2026hydrothermal,
title = {{Hydrothermal Synthesis of Water-Dispersible Fluorescent Carbon Dots from Renewable Plant Precursors: Antibacterial Activity and Comparative Characterization}},
author = {Nataliia Dudchenko and Arulappan Durairaj and Heba Shaban Agbaria and Elena Afrimzon and Ulugbek Saidvaliev and Dror Fixler and Sivan Shoshani and Ilana Perelshtein and Ehud Banin},
journal = {Nanomaterials},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.3390/nano16201328},
url = {https://www.mdpi.com/2079-4991/16/20/1328},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Hydrothermal Synthesis of Water-Dispersible Fluorescent Carbon Dots from Renewable Plant Precursors: Antibacterial Activity and Comparative Characterization
AU - Nataliia Dudchenko
AU - Arulappan Durairaj
AU - Heba Shaban Agbaria
AU - Elena Afrimzon
AU - Ulugbek Saidvaliev
AU - Dror Fixler
AU - Sivan Shoshani
AU - Ilana Perelshtein
AU - Ehud Banin
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/01
JO - Nanomaterials
DO - 10.3390/nano16201328
UR - https://www.mdpi.com/2079-4991/16/20/1328
AB - We present here a one-pot hydrothermal synthesis of fluorescent carbon dots (CDs) using olive, rosemary, sage, and thyme leaves as a carbon source. The hydrothermal reaction was conducted at 180 °C for 12 h, thereby converting biomass into water-dispersible CDs without a passivating agent. The average size of the CDs, determined by TEM, was 3–6 nm, with a spherical morphology. All synthesized CDs displayed excitation-dependent fluorescence, with emission maxima at 400–440 nm (blue) with excitation at 340–370 nm. FLIM measurements yielded similar fluorescence lifetimes of approximately 5 ns in aqueous solutions of CDs. FTIR spectra indicated surface hydroxyl and nitrogen-containing functionalities that may contribute to photoluminescence. The antibacterial activity of the as-synthesized CDs against a panel of Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria (Staphylococcus aureus, Listeria innocua, Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA), multidrug-resistant (MDR) E. coli, and Klebsiella pneumoniae (MDR)) was investigated. It was shown that biomass-derived CDs exhibit antibacterial activity, being more effective against Gram-positive bacteria, with MIC values as low as 0.625 mg/mL for olive-, rosemary-, and thyme-derived CDs against S. aureus and MRSA. These findings suggest that the developed CDs are fluorescent materials offering viable possibilities in biomedical research, as well as antimicrobial agents.
SN - 2079-4991
ER -