Are fullerenes toxic?

Furthermore, frustrated phagocytosis due to the fibrous shape of long carbon nanotubes can lead to further implications. Toxicity of fullerenes Nanotubes as compact tangles might lead to lung fibrosis and cancer, whereas as fibres they might also affect the pleura and cause mesothelioma, like asbestos.

What are the disadvantages of fullerene?

Disadvantages include: (a) highly hydrophobic and prone to aggregation; (b) overall short wavelength absorption; (c) relatively high molecular weight; (d) paradoxically can be anti-oxidants; (e) lack of fluorescence emission for imaging.

Why is C60 fullerene used in medicine?

Fullerenes (C60) and their derivatives have potential antiviral activity, which has strong implications on the treatment of HIV-infection. The antiviral activity of fullerene derivatives is based on several biological properties including their unique molecular architecture and antioxidant activity.

Why is fullerene used in medicine?

Fullerene is able to fit inside the hydrophobic cavity of HIV proteases, inhibiting the access of substrates to the catalytic site of enzyme. It can be used as radical scavenger and antioxidant.

Is C60 poisonous?

Available data clearly shows that pristine C60 has no acute or sub-acute toxicity in a large variety of living organisms, from bacteria and fungal to human leukocytes, and also in drosophila, mice, rats and guinea pigs.

Is C60 fullerene safe?

Although decades of research suggest that C60 is generally safe for humans and animals, research on the many potential health effects of C60 supplements is still in the early stages.

Is fullerene found in nature?

An unusual carbon-rich rock believed to be more than 600 million years old has yielded the first evidence that fullerenes occur in nature. The fullerenes C60 and C70 were discovered in a sample of shungite, a rock of uncertain origin found near the Russian town of Shunga, about 250 miles northeast of St. Petersburg.

Why is fullerene an antioxidant?

Fullerene acts as a potential antioxidant, thereby suppressing oxidative stress in proteins. The introduction of OH groups into fullerene is expected to increase the antioxidant power of fullerenol compared to that of the parent molecule.

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