Xing Junjie, Bi Xueting, You Meixue, Zhang Zhiwei, Xu Hong, Chen Fengqiong, Zhou Ziyan, Li Wei, Zhang Haoran, Zhang Xuejie, Lei Bingfu
Key Laboratory for Biobased Materials and Energy of Ministry of Education/Guangdong Provincial Engineering Technology Research Center for Optical Agriculture, College of Materials and Energy, South China Agricultural University, Guangzhou 510642, China.
ACS Appl Mater Interfaces. 2025 Jul 2;17(26):37362-37382. doi: 10.1021/acsami.5c04177. Epub 2025 Jun 20.
Horticultural products face multiple challenges in postharvest processing, such as preservation, anticorrosion, and quality maintenance, which traditional methods often fail to address effectively. Carbon dots (CDs), a type of nanomaterial with excellent optical properties and biocompatibility, show significant potential in postharvest processing of horticultural products in recent years. This review summarizes the various applications of CDs in postharvest processing, including their roles as preservatives, antimicrobial agents, and antioxidants. Specifically, this review particularly focuses on the unique mechanisms of action within chloroplasts and the plant body, examining how CDs affect postharvest plant physiological processes. It also explores the unique antioxidant functions of CDs from a plant metabolism perspective. The fluorescent properties of CDs offer unique advantages in real-time monitoring of quality changes in horticultural products, and they show broad prospects in the development of novel intelligent packaging materials that incorporate smart indicators and nondestructive detection, thereby improving their market competitiveness. As materials in direct contact with edible products, this review also emphasizes the safety and stability of CDs in practical applications. Furthermore, it identifies key directions for future research, aiming to promote the scientific application and technological innovation of CDs in postharvest handling of horticultural products, thereby providing new solutions for efficient management and sustainable development.
园艺产品在采后处理中面临着多重挑战，如保鲜、防腐和品质维持，而传统方法往往难以有效应对。碳点（CDs）作为一种具有优异光学性能和生物相容性的纳米材料，近年来在园艺产品采后处理中展现出巨大潜力。本文综述了碳点在采后处理中的各种应用，包括其作为防腐剂、抗菌剂和抗氧化剂的作用。具体而言，本文特别关注碳点在叶绿体和植物体内的独特作用机制，探讨其如何影响采后植物生理过程。同时，还从植物代谢角度探究了碳点独特的抗氧化功能。碳点的荧光特性在园艺产品品质变化的实时监测中具有独特优势，在开发包含智能指示剂和无损检测的新型智能包装材料方面展现出广阔前景，从而提高其市场竞争力。作为与可食用产品直接接触的材料，本文还强调了碳点在实际应用中的安全性和稳定性。此外，确定了未来研究的关键方向，旨在推动碳点在园艺产品采后处理中的科学应用和技术创新，从而为高效管理和可持续发展提供新的解决方案。
