Table 2 biofunctionalized CQDs and GQDs in treating gliomas

Decorating carboxymethylcellulose (CMC) with mitochondria-targeting pro-apoptotic peptide (KLA) and cell-penetrating moiety (cysteine, CYS)

U87 cell line

2.7 nm

Passive and active targeting of cancer tumors

Killing activity toward GBM cells of cysteine-bearing CMC conjugates coupled with pro-apoptotic KLA peptide

(Wang et al. 2016)

ZnS-QDs were produced using carboxymethylcellulose (CMC), then conjugated with Dox

HEK 293 T cell line, and U87 cell line

3.6 nm

Behaving as active fluorescent nanoprobes and nanocarriers with modulated drug release for killing malignant glioma cells

Internalizing by brain cancer cells

(Perini et al. 2020a)

Stabilization of Ag–In–S/ZnS QDs with chitosan, decoration of VEGF antibody on the surface of QDs

U87 and HEK 293 T cell lines

–

Behaving as bifunctional immunoconjugates

Internalization of the cells and killing them

(Perini et al. 2021)

CDs derived from D-glucose and L-aspartic acid as starting materials

C6 glioma cell line

2.28 nm

Construction of an intelligent nanomedicine

Freely penetrating BBB and precisely targeting glioma tissue

(Medintz et al. 2005; Xu et al. 2018)

Decoration of a photosensitizer (chlorine e6, Ce6) on a surface of CDs mediated by Gd³⁺ as a glue

A549 tumor-bearing mice, MGC803 cell line

–

Photodynamic therapy (PDT)

Enhancing cellular uptake and accumulation of Ce6 in the tumor

Wang et al. 2018)

Decoration of epsilon–poly-_L-lysine (3PL) and antimicrobial peptide agent (AMP) on a surface of ZnS QDs

U87 MG cell line

3.1 nm

Fighting against opportunistic pathogenic infection

Enhancing cellular uptake and presenting mid-antibacterial activity

Şimşek et al. 2020)

Curcumin loaded on the chitosan (CS)/gelatin (GE)/CQDs

U87 MG cell line

–

Control-released behavior with 22-h half-life

Enhanced cytotoxicity compared to pure curcumin

Jha et al. 2020)

Decoration of Dimethylformamide on the surface of GQDs (DMF–GQDs) combined with Dox

U87 MG cell line

10 nm

Toxicity, especially for GBM cells at higher concentrations

Increasing the efficacy of reduction of cell viability more than IC₅₀ of antitumor drug alone

Increase in the Dox uptake that originated from the U87 cell membrane permeability changes, reducing dose requirement

(Jung et al. 2015)

Green–GQDs and COOH–GQDs conjugated with Dox

U87 Glioblastoma cells and mouse cortical neurons

10 nm

Drug delivery system

Significant reduction in cell viability, changing membrane permeability

(Song et al. 2019)