Synthesis and Cytotoxicity Analysis of Carbon Nanohorn-Quantum Dot Complexes

Carbon nanoparticles have the potential to significantly impact the medical field over the next decade. Currently, carbon nanoparticles are being studied for a myriad of applications, including drug delivery, selective laser therapy, imaging, and biosensing. The most common type of carbon particles being investigated are carbon nanotubes (CNTs). CNTs are attractive materials for medical applications because of their physical properties and the ease with which they can be surface modified; however, there is a great deal of controversy over their possible toxicity. A more novel type of CNT that was discovered in 1999 by Iijima et al. is the carbon nanohorn [1]. Individual single-walled nanohorns (SWNHs) are single graphene sheets that roll into a conical open ended structure. The open ends of these cones are then attracted to one another through van der Waals interactions and form a flower-like final structure [2]. SWNHs are more favorable for medical applications because they are produced without the use of metal catalysts abating the concern of toxicity associated with CNTs.