Quantum dots (QDs) comprise an emerging group of materials with innumerable number of possibilities in biological research including cellular labelling. Among the leading members in this category, ZnSe/ZnS quantum dots (QDs) hold greater attractive possibilities in imaging primarily due to their higher biocompatibility and dispersibility. Nevertheless, the inherent toxicity of ZnSe/ZnS QDs is not yet completely explored which largely compromise most of their biomedical application potential. Strong blue emitting water soluble QDs effectively synthesized by aqueous phase route. Synthesized QDs further subjected to various optical and physicochemical characterization. Approximately 5–6 nm sized ZnSe/ZnS QDs illuminated bluish green fluorescence under UV lamp. Present study addresses possible adverse effects of ZnSe/ZnS QDs in hepatic system using HepG2 cells; which is the routinely employed in vitroliver cell model. A bundle of assays wasperformed out to reveal the cytotoxic nature of ZnSe/ZnS QDs and the mechanism behind it. Herein, absorption, distribution, metabolism, excretion and toxicity (ADME and T) of ZnSe/ZnS in mice were profiled in detail followed by intravenous (i.v.) and intraperitoneal (i.p.) administration at a dose of 10 mg/kg body weight. In a short review, it could be state that ZnSe/ZnS QDs did not exhibit any significant in vivo toxicity outcome in mice.

量子点 (QD) 包括一组新兴材料，在包括细胞标记在内的生物研究中具有无数可能性。在这一类别的主要成员中，ZnSe/ZnS 量子点 (QD) 在成像方面具有更大的吸引力，这主要是因为它们具有更高的生物相容性和分散性。然而，ZnSe/ZnS QD 的固有毒性尚未完全探索，这在很大程度上损害了它们的大部分生物医学应用潜力。通过水相途径有效合成的强蓝光水溶性量子点。合成的 QD 进一步进行各种光学和物理化学表征。大约 5-6 nm 大小的 ZnSe/ZnS QD 在紫外灯下发出蓝绿色荧光。本研究使用 HepG2 细胞解决了 ZnSe/ZnS QDs 在肝脏系统中可能产生的不利影响；这是经常使用的体外肝细胞模型。进行了一系列分析以揭示 ZnSe/ZnS QD 的细胞毒性性质及其背后的机制。在此，详细描述了小鼠中 ZnSe/ZnS 的吸收、分布、代谢、排泄和毒性（ADME 和 T），然后以 10 mg/kg 体重的剂量进行静脉内 (iv) 和腹腔内 (ip) 给药。在简短的回顾中，可以说 ZnSe/ZnS QD 在小鼠体内没有表现出任何显着的体内毒性结果。