title: Carbon nanotubes: an emerging drug carrier for targeting cancer cells.
abstract: During recent years carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have been attracted by many researchers as a drug delivery carrier. CNTs are the third allotropic form of carbon-fullerenes which were rolled into cylindrical tubes. To be integrated into the biological systems, CNTs can be chemically modified or functionalised with therapeutically active molecules by forming stable covalent bonds or supramolecular assemblies based on noncovalent interactions. Owing to their high carrying capacity, biocompatibility, and specificity to cells, various cancer cells have been explored with CNTs for evaluation of pharmacokinetic parameters, cell viability, cytotoxicty, and drug delivery in tumor cells. This review attempts to highlight all aspects of CNTs which render them as an effective anticancer drug carrier and imaging agent. Also the potential application of CNT in targeting metastatic cancer cells by entrapping biomolecules and anticancer drugs has been covered in this review.
authors.affiliation: School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, IFTM University, Moradabad, Uttar Pradesh 244001, India.
authors.forename: Vaibhav
authors.identifier: 0000-0001-7857-7457
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Rastogi
authors.affiliation: School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, IFTM University, Moradabad, Uttar Pradesh 244001, India.
authors.forename: Pragya
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-6599-5315
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Yadav
authors.affiliation: School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, IFTM University, Moradabad, Uttar Pradesh 244001, India.
authors.forename: Shiv Sankar
authors.initials: SS
authors.lastname: Bhattacharya
authors.affiliation: School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, IFTM University, Moradabad, Uttar Pradesh 244001, India.
authors.forename: Arun Kumar
authors.initials: AK
authors.lastname: Mishra
authors.affiliation: School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, IFTM University, Moradabad, Uttar Pradesh 244001, India.
authors.forename: Navneet
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Verma
authors.affiliation: School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, IFTM University, Moradabad, Uttar Pradesh 244001, India.
authors.forename: Anurag
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Verma
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmaceutics, Institute of Technology, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh 221005, India.
authors.forename: Jayanta Kumar
authors.initials: JK
authors.lastname: Pandit