Carbon Nanotropes: A Contemporary Paradigm in Drug Delivery

Avinash Tripathi,Shailendra Saraf,Shubhini Saraf

doi:10.3390/ma8063068

Avinash Tripathi, Shailendra Saraf + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.3390/ma8063068

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Abstract

Discovery of fullerenes and other nanosized carbon allotropes has opened a vast new field of possibilities in nanotechnology and has become one of the most promising research areas. Carbon nanomaterials have drawn interest as carriers of biologically pertinent molecules due to their distinctive physical, chemical and physiological properties. We have assigned the nomenclature “Carbon Nanotropes” to the nanosized carbon allotropes. Carbon nanotropes such as fullerenes, carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and graphenes, have exhibited wide applicability in drug delivery, owing to their small size and biological activity. The nanotherapeutics/diagnostics will allow a deeper understanding of human ills including cancer, neurodegenerative diseases, genetic disorders and various other complications. Recently, nanomaterials with multiple functions, such as drug carrier, MRI, optical imaging, photothermal therapy, etc., have become more and more popular in the domain of cancer and other areas of research. This review is an endeavor to bring together the usefulness of the carbon nanomaterials in the field of drug delivery. The last section of the review encompasses the recent patents granted on carbon nanotropes at United State Patent Trademark Office (USPTO) in the related field.

Highlights

The fullerenes, carbon nanotubes (CNTs), graphenes, sp-sp2 graphynes and many other synthetic allotropes are the latest addition to the family of the element carbon, in conjunction with the two kinds of graphite, two kinds of diamond, chaoit and carbon
It was observed that CNT/DNA interaction was the preferred route of toxicity in a 3 h incubation study with 96 μg single wall carbon nanotube (SWCNT)/cm2, which induced DNA damage in lung fibroblasts [42]
Through the observation of specific toxic events, that result from incubations with different types of Functionalized carbon nanotubes (f-CNTs), to test for functional groups that reduce the severity of such events

Summary

Introduction

The fullerenes, carbon nanotubes (CNTs), graphenes, sp-sp graphynes and many other synthetic allotropes are the latest addition to the family of the element carbon, in conjunction with the two kinds of graphite, two kinds of diamond, chaoit and carbon. These new allotropes of carbon are nanosized and, we have coined the term “carbon nanotropes” for them. Synthetic carbon allotropes represent a growing family of fascinating, and aesthetically pleasing, architectures with outstanding material properties. In the family of synthetic carbon nanotropes, fullerenes correspond to the most rigorously explored class. Organic solar cells have already entered the market as the first fullerene-based product

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