Abstract

Carbon nanostructures (CNs), such as carbon nanotubes, fullerenes, carbon dots, nanodiamonds as well as graphene and its derivatives present a tremendous potential for various biomedical applications, ranging from sensing to drug delivery and gene therapy, biomedical imaging and tissue engineering. Since most of these applications encompass blood contact or intravenous injection, hemocompatibility is a critical aspect that must be carefully considered to take advantage of CN exceptional characteristics while allowing their safe use. This review discusses the hemocompatibility of different classes of CNs with the purpose of providing biomaterial scientists with a comprehensive vision of the interactions between CNs and blood components. The various complex mechanisms involved in blood compatibility, including coagulation, hemolysis, as well as the activation of complement, platelets, and leukocytes will be considered. Special attention will be paid to the role of CN size, structure, and surface properties in the formation of the protein corona and in the processes that drive blood response. The aim of this review is to emphasize the importance of hemocompatibility for CNs intended for biomedical applications and to provide some valuable insights for the development of new generation particles with improved performance and safety in the physiological environment.

Highlights

  • Due to its ability to assume different hybridization states, including sp2 and sp3 hybridization, carbon can form different allotropes which exhibit peculiar chemical and physical characteristics derived from their specific structure

  • CarbonNanotubes nanotubes in their simplest form, i.e., single-wall carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs), consist of a singleCarbon sheet ofnanotubes graphene rolled upsimplest in a seamless form with a diameter of a few nanometers and in their form, tubular i.e., single-wall carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs), consist typical length in of thegraphene range of rolled a few up micrometers by the same of a single sheet in a seamless tubularThey form were with adiscovered diameter ofina 1993 few nanometers research group that a couple of years earlier identified, for the first time by electron microscopy, and typical length in the range of a few micrometers [121,122]

  • Numerous studies considering the interactions of CNTs and graphene-based nanostructures (GBNs) with blood and its components have been proposed in the literature, while less extensive investigations have been conducted on NDs, carbon dots (CDs) and fullerenes, and only few comparative analyses have examinedthe hemocompatibility of different types of carbon nanostructures (CNs) simultaneously

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Summary

Introduction

Due to its ability to assume different hybridization states, including sp and sp hybridization, carbon can form different allotropes (e.g., graphite, diamond, and fullerene-like structures) which exhibit peculiar chemical and physical characteristics derived from their specific structure. Experimental studies have shown that cell response depends on several factors, such as CN studies have shown that cell response depends on several factors, such as CN physicochemical physicochemical properties and geometrical structure, surface functionalization, size distribution, properties geometricalwettability structure, surface functionalization, size distribution, presence presenceand of impurities, and dispersibility in aqueous media, as well as on of theimpurities, culture wettability and dispersibility in aqueous media, as well as on the culture medium and target cell medium and target cell type [25,26,27,28,29,30,31,32] The literature in this field is copious and detailed information type [25,26,27,28,29,30,31,32]. Potentialities and weaknesses of CN use in specific blood-contacting applications will be critically examined, and the strategies proposed in the literature for improving the hemocompatibility of the different classes of CNs for biomedical applications will be described

Hemocompatibility of Biomaterials—Short Overview
Carbon Nanodiamonds
Fullerenes
Carbon Dots
Carbon
Predicted
Graphene-Based Nanostructures
10. Absorbance
11. Simulated
Comparative Analysis
Findings
Conclusions
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