Issue 23, 2020

Stable, concentrated, biocompatible, and defect-free graphene dispersions with positive charge

Abstract

The outstanding properties of graphene offer high potential for biomedical applications. In this framework, positively charged nanomaterials show better interactions with the biological environment, hence there is strong interest in the production of positively charged graphene nanosheets. Currently, production of cationic graphene is either time consuming or producing dispersions with poor stability, which strongly limit their use in the biomedical field. In this study, we made a family of new cationic pyrenes, and have used them to successfully produce water-based, highly concentrated, stable, and defect-free graphene dispersions with positive charge. The use of different pyrene derivatives as well as molecular dynamics simulations allowed us to get insights on the nanoscale interactions required to achieve efficient exfoliation and stabilisation. The cationic graphene dispersions show outstanding biocompatibility and cellular uptake as well as exceptional colloidal stability in the biological medium, making this material extremely attractive for biomedical applications.

Graphical abstract: Stable, concentrated, biocompatible, and defect-free graphene dispersions with positive charge

Supplementary files

Article information

Article type
Paper
Submitted
04 apr 2020
Accepted
24 may 2020
First published
25 may 2020
This article is Open Access
Creative Commons BY-NC license

Nanoscale, 2020,12, 12383-12394

Stable, concentrated, biocompatible, and defect-free graphene dispersions with positive charge

Y. Shin, S. Vranic, X. Just-Baringo, S. M. Gali, T. Kisby, Y. Chen, A. Gkoutzidou, E. Prestat, D. Beljonne, I. Larrosa, K. Kostarelos and C. Casiraghi, Nanoscale, 2020, 12, 12383 DOI: 10.1039/D0NR02689A

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