Abstract:

With the development of production and application of carbon nanotubes (CNTs), the toxicity of CNTs has attracted much research attention. Cytotoxicity of pristine CNTs and its mechanism and influencing factors have been widely reported. CNTs are reported to induce cell apoptosis/necrosis and reduce cell viability by influencing cell adhesion, cell cycle progress or oxidative stress. On the contrary, some researchers report that CNTs have little effects on cells. The conflicting results come from the fact that many chemical and physical properties affect cytotoxicity of CNTs, including the impurities of CNTs, the purification method, the size of CNTs, aggregation/dispersion of CNTs, cell culture condition, and even analysis methods. It is essential to establish standard reference samples and detection methods for accurate assessment of the CNTs cytotoxicity. This review summarizes the research achievements on the cytotoxicity of pristine CNTs, and gives the perspective of the future research.

Key words: carbon nanotubes (CNTs); cellular toxicity; oxidative stress