13
Thomas Mavromoustakos et al. (eds.), Supramolecules in Drug Discovery and Drug Delivery: Methods and Protocols,
Methods in Molecular Biology, vol. 2207, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-0716-0920-0_2,
© Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature 2021
Chapter 2
Functionalized Carbon Nanohorns as Drug Delivery
Platforms
Anastasios Stergiou and Nikos Tagmatarchis
Abstract
Carbon nanohorns (CNHs) resembling a single-layered graphene sheet wrapped in a conical shape can be
chemically modified in order to immobilize, carry, and release biologically active molecules. Here, we
describe the major routes for the preparation of CNH-based drug delivery platforms, via covalent coupling
and encapsulation, proficient to facilitate the design of sophisticated drug nanocarriers.
Key words Carbon nanohorns, Functionalization, Encapsulation, Hybrids, Biomaterials, Drug
delivery
1 Introduction
Drug delivery system technology is considered as a major area of
research and innovation on disease treatment. As a result, a plethora of delivery platforms have been developed and tested for their
efficacy, with some traditional formulations long being on the market, others only recently approved, while numerous being under
screening and investigation. In addition, the flexibility in biomaterial synthesis and the extensive knowledge on self-assembly mechanisms compel researchers to combine simple structures and/or
nanomaterials to generate more sophisticated drug nanocarriers.
Carbon nanohorns (CNHs), within the larger carbon allotrope
family and composed of sp
2
hybridized carbon atoms, possess a
conical structure 2–5 nm in diameter and 40–50 nm in length.
Notably, CNHs aggregate in larger spherical superstructures of
around 100 nm [1] and can be economically produced in industrial quantities without requiring the involvement of any toxic
metal catalyst. The latter is a significant advantage and key difference of CNHs as compared to carbon nanotubes [2]. In addition,
the dissimilarity in shape and size of CNHs as compared to the
micrometer-long single-walled carbon nanotubes affects their
properties and applications. However, CNHs lack solubility in
Thomas Mavromoustakos et al. (eds.), Supramolecules in Drug Discovery and Drug Delivery: Methods and Protocols,
Methods in Molecular Biology, vol. 2207, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-0716-0920-0_2,
© Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature 2021
Chapter 2
Functionalized Carbon Nanohorns as Drug Delivery
Platforms
Anastasios Stergiou and Nikos Tagmatarchis
Abstract
Carbon nanohorns (CNHs) resembling a single-layered graphene sheet wrapped in a conical shape can be
chemically modified in order to immobilize, carry, and release biologically active molecules. Here, we
describe the major routes for the preparation of CNH-based drug delivery platforms, via covalent coupling
and encapsulation, proficient to facilitate the design of sophisticated drug nanocarriers.
Key words Carbon nanohorns, Functionalization, Encapsulation, Hybrids, Biomaterials, Drug
delivery
1 Introduction
Drug delivery system technology is considered as a major area of
research and innovation on disease treatment. As a result, a plethora of delivery platforms have been developed and tested for their
efficacy, with some traditional formulations long being on the market, others only recently approved, while numerous being under
screening and investigation. In addition, the flexibility in biomaterial synthesis and the extensive knowledge on self-assembly mechanisms compel researchers to combine simple structures and/or
nanomaterials to generate more sophisticated drug nanocarriers.
Carbon nanohorns (CNHs), within the larger carbon allotrope
family and composed of sp
2
hybridized carbon atoms, possess a
conical structure 2–5 nm in diameter and 40–50 nm in length.
Notably, CNHs aggregate in larger spherical superstructures of
around 100 nm [1] and can be economically produced in industrial quantities without requiring the involvement of any toxic
metal catalyst. The latter is a significant advantage and key difference of CNHs as compared to carbon nanotubes [2]. In addition,
the dissimilarity in shape and size of CNHs as compared to the
micrometer-long single-walled carbon nanotubes affects their
properties and applications. However, CNHs lack solubility in