LAUSR

Carbon dots (CDs) have emerged as an extremely promising platform for biological imaging, owing to their optical properties and low toxicity. However, one of the major challenges in utilizing CDs for in vivo imaging is their high immunogenicity and rapid clearance, which limits their potential. Herein, we present a novel approach for mitigating these issues through the development of carbon dot nanocapsules (nCDs). Specifically, CDs were encapsulated within a zwitterionic polymer shell composed of 2-methacryloyloxyethyl phosphorylcholine (MPC) to create nCDs with a size of approximately 40 nm. Notably, the nCDs exhibited excitation-dependent photoluminescence behavior in the range of 550 nm-600 nm, with tunability based on the excitation wavelength. In confocal imaging, CDs displayed a strong fluorescence signal after 8 hours of incubation with phagocytes, while nCDs showed minimal signal, suggesting that nCDs may be capable of evading phagocyte uptake. Furthermore, imaging studies in zebrafish demonstrated that nCDs exhibited a retention time more than 10 times longer than that of CDs, with fluorescence intensity remaining at 81% after 10 hours compared to only 8% for CDs. Taken together, our study presents a novel approach for enhancing the performance of CDs in in vivo imaging applications, offering significant potential for clinical translation. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.