Advancement in therapeutic application of quantum dots in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: current opportunities and challenges

Despite advancements in healthcare settings in developed countries, the early detection and higher mortality rate associated with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a fatal motor neuronal disorder, remain challenging. Recently, quantum dots (QDs) have emerged as a promising nanocarrier in the prognosis and treatment of ALS owing to their unique multifunctional properties. QDs, through their photoluminescence properties upon excitation, can facilitate the identification and real-time monitoring of disease biomarkers. They also act as a nanocarrier for the targeted delivery of therapeutics, avoiding accumulation at the non-targeted sites and minimising toxicity. QDs can be fabricated to conjugate with protein biomarkers linked to ALS, such as specific proteins, nucleic acids, or genetic variants, for the diagnosis of the disease. Such fabrication could lead to enhanced identification and diagnostic patterns of ALS, thereby contributing to improved therapeutic intervention strategies. Furthermore, these tiny structures could be applied in combined biosensor formats to identify ALS-associated biomarkers in body fluids, which would be a highly sensitive diagnostic system. Subsequently, comprehensive multiomics techniques have demonstrated improved identification of newer protein targets associated with neurological complications. Overall, QDs can be explored as a potential tool to identify biomarkers relevant to ALS, diagnose the disease at its early stages, and track the effectiveness of the treatment. The integration of QD with omic-based strategies and network analysis can potentially catalyse a breakthrough in the management of ALS. Therefore, this review aims to explore the application of QDs in ALS diagnosis and management, advancements in research, clinical trials, and patents.