Quantum dot-based photoelectric conversion for biosensing applications

•Quantum dot-based electrochemiluminescence and photoelectrochemical biosensing.•Quantum dots as nanoemitters for electrochemiluminescence-sensing systems•Quantum dot-based photoelectrochemical biosensing mechanisms and applications.•Electrochemiluminescence and photoelectrochemical techniques for cancer diagnostics.•Electrochemiluminescence and photoelectrochemical techniques in cancer therapeutics.

As semiconductor nanocrystals, quantum dots (QDs) have attracted great interest in recent years in chemical and biological detection due to their attractive optoelectronic characteristics. Biosensing of QD-based photoelectric conversion mainly includes electrochemiluminescence (ECL) and photoelectrochemical (PEC) sensing. Different authors have published overviews of bioanalytical applications of QDs. However, there has been no specific review on the use of QD-based systems for ECL and PEC bioanalysis. In this overview, we review novel methods and sensing principles based on using QDs for ECL and PEC sensing. We then provide an outlook on the future of the QD-based ECL and PEC biosensors.