The ideal crystalline structure of graphene is a hexagonal grid. Credit: Alexander Aius
Key points:
- Graphene is a revolutionary nanomaterial that has the potential to tackle many of the world’s challenges.
- After breathing in graphene oxide through a face mask, participants experienced no adverse effects on lung function or blood pressure.
- The discovery that graphene oxide can be developed safely opens the door to new devices, treatment innovations, and monitoring techniques.
New research indicates that graphene can be developed without acute risk to human health. The study, published in Nature Nanotechnology, examines the effect of controlled inhalation of a specific type of graphene on human lung and cardiovascular function.
Researchers recruited 14 volunteers for a controlled exposed clinical trial. The volunteers breathed in thin, ultra-pure graphene oxide through a face mask for two hours while cycling in a purpose-designed mobile exposure chamber.
The team measured lung function, blood pressure, blood clotting, and inflammation in the blood before the exposure and at two-hour intervals. After a few weeks, the volunteers returned to the clinic for repeated controlled exposures to a different size of graphene oxide or clean air. There were no adverse effects on lung function, blood pressure, or the majority of the other parameters.
“Being able to explore the safety of this unique material in human volunteers is a huge step forward in our understanding of how graphene could affect the body,” said Mark Miller of the University of Edinburgh. “With careful design we can safely make the most of the nanotechnology.”
In the future, researchers plan to determine if higher doses of graphene oxide or other forms of graphene may have a different effect on health. They also want to examine the impact of longer exposure to the material.
Understanding the health risk of graphene is a major breakthrough as it has the potential to tackle many global challenges. Some of its possible applications include electronics, phone screens, clothing, paints, and water purification. Additionally, the material may have utility in targeted therapeutics against cancer and for implantable devices and sensors.
“The discovery that this type of graphene can be developed safely, with minimal short term side effects, could open the door to the development of new devices, treatment innovations, and monitoring techniques,” explained Bryan Williams of the British Heart Foundation.