A carbon-wrapped nanoscaled thermometer for temperature control in biological environments.

AIMS: A carbon-wrapped nanoscaled thermometer for a contactless temperature control in biological systems on the cellular level is presented. MATERIALS & METHODS: The thermometer is based on multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) filled with materials with strongly temperature-dependent nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) parameters. The NMR frequency shift and relaxation time were measured in cuprous-iodide-filled CNTs at different temperatures. RESULTS: The experimental data indicate a pronounced temperature dependence of the NMR parameters, thereby realizing the nanoscaled thermometer. CONCLUSION: This study is a proof-of-concept that the functionalized CNTs can be used as a contactless thermometer in biomedical applications.

Carbon nanotubes filled with a chemotherapeutic agent: a nanocarrier mediates inhibition of tumor cell growth.

AIM: In this paper, carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are presented as feasible carriers for carboplatin, a therapeutic agent for cancer treatment. The drug was introduced into CNTs to demonstrate that they are suited as nanocontainers and nanocarriers and can release the drug to initialize its medical virtue. METHOD: The filling was accomplished by a wet-chemical approach after the CNTs were opened. The effect on cell proliferation and cytotoxicity of the carboplatin-filled CNT was investigated by using a viability assays. RESULTS: Using different analysis methods such as electron energy loss spectroscopy and x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy the structure of carboplatin incorporated into the CNTs was found to be retained. In vitro studies showed that carboplatin-filled CNTs inhibited growth of bladder cancer cells whereas unfilled, opened CNTs barely affected cancer cell growth. CONCLUSION: A reversible filling-emptying process could be performed successfully within this work. This highlights the potential of CNTs for applications in the field of drug delivery.