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Formation of Pdots and Pdot-siRNA and delivery mechanism to the cell. (A) Synthesis of Pdots and binding with siRNA around the Pdots. (B) Pdot-siRNA nanoplatform undergoes cellular uptake and siRNA delivery to target transcripts. 

One of the current challenges of working with nanomaterials in bioapplications is having a tool that is biocompatible (non-toxic) and produces stable, intense fluorescence for bioimaging. 

Nanozymes are a class of artificial enzymes that have dimensions in the nanometer range and can be composed of simple metal and metal oxide nanoparticles, metal nanoclusters, dots (both quantum and carbon), nanotubes, nanowires, or multiple metal-organic frameworks (MOFs). They exhibit excellent catalytic activities with low cost, high operational robustness, and a stable shelf-life. More importantly, they are amenable to modifications that can change their surface structures and increase the range of their applications. There are three main classes of nanozymes including the peroxidase-like, the oxidase-like, and the antioxidant nanozymes. Each of these classes catalyzes a specific group of reactions. With the development of nanoscience and nanotechnology, the variety of applications for nanozymes in diverse fields has expanded dramatically, with the most popular applications in biosensing. Nanozyme-based novel biosensors have been designed to detect ions, small molecules, nucleic acids, proteins, and cancer cells. The current review focuses on the catalytic mechanism of nanozymes, their application in biosensing, and the identification of future directions for the field.