The Study on Toxicokinetics and Distribution of CdSe Quantum Dots in Rats

We aimed to investigate the difference on toxicokinetics and tissue distribution of different size and soluble cadmium selenide (Quantum dot) QD in rats. Male SD rats were divided randomly into five groups by size and dissolubility. Tail vein of rats was exposed to each CdSe QD. After the exposure the blood samples were taken from rats in following time: 1st, 12th, 24th, 36th, 48th, 60th h. Removed its liver, kidney, brain and testes on the next day and monitored the concentration of cadmium in the blood and the organs of each group using ICP-AES. The content of cadmium in the blood had a trend of decreasing gradually after CdSe QDs exposure. The bigger the particle diameter was, the sooner the concentration of cadmium in blood and the distribution were. The metabolic rate of dissolved CdSe is faster than other indissolvable ones. The metabolism of CdSe QD was first-order two compartment model. These results reveal potential risks of their future applications in medicine and semiconductor.