Exploration of value-added soybean oil cake based carbon quantum dots for in-vitro biomedical applications

Carbon quantum dots (C-dots) enthused the inquisitiveness of investigators in biomedicine due to their distinctive features including minimal toxicity, superior water solubility and biocompatibility. This study uses an environmental friendly hydrothermal approach to create high-fluorescent agricultural residue-derived carbon quantum dots from Soybean Oil Cake (SOC). The synthesized SOCC-Dots were examined by physiochemical techniques such as High-Resolution Transmission Electron Microscopy (HR-TEM), UV–Visible spectroscopy (UV–Vis), Photoluminescence (PL), Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FT-IR), X-ray diffraction analysis (XRD), Zeta potential and Raman Spectroscopy. The absorption peak at 275 nm is evident due to the presence of C = O bonds of π→π* transition. The synthesized SOCC-Dots demonstrated the existence of several functional groups OH, C = O, and CO stretching vibration. The particles collected display spherical morphology with an average of 3.25 nm size by HR-TEM analysis spectra. The photoluminescence showed stability against various excitation wavelengths and had a maximum emission peak at 445 nm. Anti-inflammatory activity is tested using a Bovine serum assay displaying significant results of 87.4 % for SOCC-dots at a concentration of 50 µg/mL due to their superior biocompatibility and water solubility. The results of the cytotoxicity evaluation showed an 85 % survival rate among nauplii after 48 h at concentrations of 80 µg/mL, and the antioxidant activity exhibited outstanding performance, achieving an 87 % efficacy rate for SOCC-dots at a concentration of 50 μg/mL