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Review
. 2013 Dec 18;14(12):24619-42.
doi: 10.3390/ijms141224619.

Preparation of magnetic carbon nanotubes (Mag-CNTs) for biomedical and biotechnological applications

Andrea Masotti  1 , Andrea Caporali
Affiliations
Review

Preparation of magnetic carbon nanotubes (Mag-CNTs) for biomedical and biotechnological applications

Andrea Masotti et al. Int J Mol Sci. .

Abstract

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have been widely studied for their potential applications in many fields from nanotechnology to biomedicine. The preparation of magnetic CNTs (Mag-CNTs) opens new avenues in nanobiotechnology and biomedical applications as a consequence of their multiple properties embedded within the same moiety. Several preparation techniques have been developed during the last few years to obtain magnetic CNTs: grafting or filling nanotubes with magnetic ferrofluids or attachment of magnetic nanoparticles to CNTs or their polymeric coating. These strategies allow the generation of novel versatile systems that can be employed in many biotechnological or biomedical fields. Here, we review and discuss the most recent papers dealing with the preparation of magnetic CNTs and their application in biomedical and biotechnological fields.

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Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
CNTs filled with metals. Two methods for bubbling metals from the nanotubes (electron beam focusing and heat generation) in order to obtain metallic nanotips/nanoantennas are illustrated.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Chemical structure of Mn12Ac single-molecule magnets (SMM) and schematic representation of its encapsulation in a carbon nanotube.
Figure 3.
Figure 3.
CNTs grown within the pores of an alumina template are filled with magnetite nanoparticles by exploiting the magnetic field generated by placing a magnet beneath the assembly. After filling, CNTs can be easily recovered for downstream applications.
Figure 4.
Figure 4.
Structure of magnetic metal polyoxometalate (MPOM) cluster attached to CNTs. The representation of the CNT profile of density (obtained by HAADF-STEM) clearly emphasize the presence of several clusters attached along the outer surface.
Figure 5.
Figure 5.
Structure of Ni13 (a) and Pt13 (c) clusters attached to CNTs; (b) and (d) reports the recognition of benzene by these CNTs.
Figure 6.
Figure 6.
Preparation of magnetic CNTs following the Fenton’s reagent synthetic scheme. The oxidation of Fe(II) to Fe(III) with H2O2 allows attachment to the oxidized CNTs. A hydrothermal reaction conducted on the whole assembly, under controlled atmosphere, leads to the formation of magnetic CNTs.
Figure 7.
Figure 7.
Preparation of magnetic CNTs decorated with magnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (ligand exchange reaction). The magnetic core is exchanged by passing from the stearate molecule to the CNTs.
Figure 8.
Figure 8.
Preparation of magnetic CNTs decorated with magnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (chemoselective ligation or “click chemistry”).
Figure 9.
Figure 9.
Fe3O4/Pt nanoparticles loaded on carbon nanotubes (CNTs) by a high-temperature solution-phase hydrolysis method.
Figure 10.
Figure 10.
The synthetic route to Mag-CNTs@mSiO2.
Figure 11.
Figure 11.
Fe3O4-coated CNTs (left) and PANI/Fe3O4/CNTs (right).
Figure 12.
Figure 12.
Schematic procedure to obtain CNTs coated with magnetic nanoparticles (Mag-CNTs). Two different assemblies of NPs onto CNTs can be obtained: uniform (left) and non-uniform (right).
Figure 13.
Figure 13.
Coating of magnetic particles with polymers prior to incubation with CNTs.
Figure 14.
Figure 14.
Schematic representation of magnetic nanoparticles encapsulated within the graphitic wall of CNTs and transmission electron microscopy of magnetic CNTs.
Figure 15.
Figure 15.
Chemical formula of the Fe3O4–PEG–FITC–CNT (left) and schematic illustration of multicomponent Fe3O4-PEG-FITC-CNT nanoparticles bound to glutathione (GSH) (right).
Figure 16.
Figure 16.
Preparation of water-dispersible DOX-Fe3O4@CNT-HQDs-Trf conjugates.
Figure 17.
Figure 17.
Magnetic field driven magnetic CNTs into HSPCs. Once the magnetic nanosystem has been assembled, the incubation with cells aided by an external magnetic field, improves the transfection efficiency.
Figure 18.
Figure 18.
The preparation of Mag-CNTs with targeting properties involves several steps: coating of CNTs with a polymeric material, attachment of iron oxide nanoparticles to the polymer, fluorescent probe (FITC) and targeting molecules (folic acid) attachment and finally coating with doxorubicin.
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