A paper published in ‘Biomaterials’ reports the possible use of graphene nanoparticles to combat anxiety-related behaviour in vertebrates. This study envisions the application of these graphene flakes as nanotools for improved precision medicine.
A new study on the application of graphene nanoparticles for anxiety treatment has been recently presented in a paper published in Biomaterials. This research was carried out by SISSA - International School for Advanced Studies of Trieste (Italy), the Catalan Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology (ICN2, Barcelona) and the National Graphene Institute of the University of Manchester (UK), in the framework of the European Graphene Flagship project. From the ICN2, Dr Belén Ballesteros, leader of the Electron Microscopy Unit, group leader Prof. Kostas Kotarelos and Dr Neus Lozano, from the Nanomedicine group, participated in the work.
This study has experimented on graphene flakes, which have the ability to interact with the excitatory synapses of the nervous system in vertebrates in a very specific manner, interrupting the building up of a pathological process that leads to anxiety-related behaviour. To carry out the experimentation, researchers performed in vivo tests in rats as well as in vitro tests. These findings prove the potential use of graphene flakes as nanotools (i. e. biomedical tools based on nanomaterials) that could act on synaptic activity to interrupt an anxious-leading pathological process. What is more, these nanotools might be also employed to transport drugs or for other applications in the field of precision medicine.
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