Anyone who’s ever broken a bone is all too aware of the implications. The healing process is slow, you need to rest well and often a full recovery can take months. However, all this could change with the application of new materials created especially for the job in a lab: these substances are able to mimic the structure of human bone, stimulate cell reproduction and serve as a kind of glue to accelerate the process of tissue regeneration and heal the damage much more quickly. The discovery was made by a team of researchers from Carnegie Mellon University (Pittsburgh), who were developing and testing the potential applications of graphene, a nanomaterial, modifying its chemical make-up to make it more similar to porous bone tissue and creating a bio-compatible, biodegradable substance.

The study, which has just been published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, has shown that the modified structure can function both in vitro and in living organisms (lab rats), paving the way for tests on human beings. But why graphene, exactly? And, from a more general perspective, what other potential applications are there for this material in the world of medicine?

A Nobel-worthy material

First and foremost, what exactly are we referring to when we talk about graphene? In short, it’s the thinnest material in existence, to the extent that we can comfortably call it two-dimensional, as if it were merely a surface. Graphene consists of a single layer of carbon atoms arranged on a lattice structure, with a thickness at least one million times thinner than a single human hair.

At the same time, it’s the strongest material we know – at least 200 times stronger than steel, according its pioneers, scientists Andre Geim and Konstantin Novoselov, who in 2010 won the Nobel prize for physics.

If that wasn’t already enough, graphene conducts electricity better than many other substances, including silicon – the king of processors. Chemically, it can be processed in a huge range of ways, something that opens the door to an array of possibilities in terms of properties and applications. It’s no coincidence, then, that there are already hundreds of groups around the world working to incorporate graphene into new technology and devices.

Not just prosthetics

The group from Carnegie Mellon University has certainly achieved the most impressive results so far. The crux of the idea was to give the material chemical and mechanic properties that are extremely similar to those of real bone, while – at the same time – giving it the power to stimulate the growth and differentiation of stem cells, which are the precursors of all tissues in our bodies.

Yet the potential for graphene in the world of medicine is huge. In addition to tissue engineering, biomedical research around the material is also focusing heavily on medicines, particularly drug delivery, the process that allows the active substance in a medicine to get to where it needs to go. Flat, easily modifiable surfaces such as graphene can be easily loaded with molecules of a medicine, transforming them into platforms for selective release. For example, this approach could be used to ensure that chemotherapy targets only cancerous cells and not healthy ones, thus making treatment more effective and reducing harmful side effects.

These properties also mean that graphene is also extremely useful in the development of nanometric, ultra-sensitive smart sensors that can be inserted into bodies for advanced diagnostics and to monitor the activity of organs and tissues such as the brain.

Safety first

In addition to the race to identify new uses for graphene, the material is also the focus on extensive risk assessment research, which aims to gauge how safe it is for humans, other living beings and the environment as a whole.

The long-term effects of graphene on organisms are not yet clear and must be analysed on the basis of the type of application and the tissue involved – essentially a case-by-case approach. It’s a pretty lengthy process, which is par for the course when it comes to all medicines and medicinal equipment.

So while there is great excitement around the potential of graphene, there are still a number of question marks and potential controversies to be tackled.