ABSTRACT
Carbon nanotubes (CNTs) are carbon-based nanomaterials in which graphene sheets composed of carbon atoms arranged in benzene rings, rolled up to form cylinders. CNTs have been classified into single-walled (SWCNTs) and multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) based on the number of graphene sheets involved in the formation of CNTs. CNTs have been reported to have versatile applications in the field of biomedicine and biotechnology. This is mainly due to the unique chemical, physical, and biological characteristics of CNTs. This chapter aims to describe some of the biotechnological and biomedical applications of carbon nanotubes such as bio-sensing, gene therapy and drug delivery, tissue engineering, etc. Even though CNTs have such a wide application, some of the disadvantages reported by various literatures are the non-compatibility of CNTs with biological systems. But this was being able to overcome by various functionalization approaches which have been shown to enhance chemical reactivity to reagents and leads to increased biocompatibility (Figure 2.1).
