Fullerenes are allotropes of carbon holding a centre stage in nanotechnology for its unique physio-chemical properties to exhibit applications which seem to be superior to classical technologies.Scientists from Italy have produced a turning point and found that fullerenes are capable of interacting with lipids of vegetable origin including castor.The significance is that the fullerene-lipid complex is not generated of a mere physical association instead it is a materialistically transformed chemical reaction where allotropic carbon under study serves as a reductant to covalently bind the spontaneously oxidized castor oil.
The fullerene behaviour was functionally evaluated with a standard solvent against auto-oxidized vegetable oils and found to have a consistency in electron transfer nature.The experiment was repeated with other lipids as well produced from different vegetable sources and an identical reductant activity of fullerene was noticed.Spectrophotometry was the tool applied to analyze the fullerenes chemical activity.
As it is well proved that fullerenes are drivers of nanotechnology and probably any molecule associated with it may present strange applications subjected for exploitation.Surprisingly, the experimental assessment shows castor based lipids as one among the candidate members to display a complex which when characterized at molecular and elemental level would link and expand fullerenes potential in biology.
For reading:http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20338159
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Our technology is growing very fast. I think that fullerenes in the long run will make a good name in biology. As far as it goes well with the tests. Thanks for keeping updates. Cheers!