Silicon nanomaterials are one of the most representative inorganic nanomedicines in therapeutic biomedicine. Silicon quantum dots (Si QDs) have aroused wide attention in the biomedical field owing to their abundant natural reserves, favorable biocompatibility, and attractive optical properties. In recent years, extensive efforts have been devoted to exploring efficient strategies for the synthesis of Si QDs suitable for versatile biomedical applications. Herein, this Review focuses on the recent exciting advances in how Si QDs can be designed into promising biomedical materials. Rational design of the fabrication methods and modifications of Si QDs is discussed, which provides a generic idea for the biomedical exploration of modified Si QDs. In addition, up-to-date research hotspots of Si QD applications in the biomedical field are also summarized, including disease diagnosis/therapeutics, bioanalyte sensing, and tissue engineering. This Review aims to provide material researchers with deep insights into the design of novel Si QDs for biomedical applications.

With the rapid progress in nanomaterials and biochemistry, there has been an explosion of interest in biomolecule-modified quantum dots (QDs) for biomedical applications. Metal chalcogenide quantum dots (MCQDs), as the most widely studied QDs, have attracted tremendous attention in the biomedical field on account of their unique and excellent optical properties and the ease of biomolecular modifications. Herein, important advances in MCQDs over recent years are reviewed, from materials design to biomedical applications. Especially, this review focuses on the challenges encountered in the applications of MCQDs in biomedical fields and how these problems can be solved by rational design of synthesis methods and modifications, which have opened a universal route to develop the functionalized MCQDs. Moreover, recent processes in bioimaging, biosensing, and cancer therapy based on MCQDs are examined, including the rapid detection and diagnosis of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). This review provides broad insights into MCQDs in the biomedical field and will inspire material researchers to develop MCQDs in the future.

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