Biomedical applications and biosafety profile of carbon nanotubes-based composites

Abstract

Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have attracted a lot of attention due to their unique mechanical strength, electrical and physicochemical properties as well as thermal and chemical stability for a wide range of biomedical applications. Conventional biomedical materials can be modified using CNTs in order to enhance the mechanical strength, electrical properties and biocompatibility. Various multifunctional composites have been manufactured using CNTs by combining them with different polymers, inorganic and biological materials. Because of these attributes, CNTs-based composites can be applied in a variety of biomedical applications, such as electrochemical sensors, antimicrobial coatings, tissue engineering and neural implants. Despite extensive research, various biomedical applications of CNTs-based composites are still restricted to laboratory. However, biosafety profile/toxicity of CNTs is a major concern before applying CNTs-based composites to biomedical devices. In this chapter, study on the development, biomedical applications, and biosafety profile/toxicity of CNTs-based composites have been discussed.