Property–Activity Relationship of Black Phosphorus at the Nano–Bio Interface: From Molecules to Organisms

Abstract

As a novel member of the two-dimensional nanomaterial family, mono- or few-layer black phosphorus (BP) with direct bandgap and high charge carrier mobility is promising in many applications such as microelectronic devices, photoelectronic devices, energy technologies, and catalysis agents. Due to its benign elemental composition (phosphorus), large surface area, electronic/photonic performances, and chemical/biological activities, BP has also demonstrated a great potential in biomedical applications including biosensing, photothermal/photodynamic therapies, controlled drug releases, and antibacterial uses. The nature of the BP–bio interface is comprised of dynamic contacts between nanomaterials (NMs) and biological systems, where BP and the biological system interact. The physicochemical interactions at the nano–bio interface play a critical role in the biological effects of NMs. In this review, we discuss the interface in the context of BP as a nanomaterial and its unique physicochemical properties that may affect its biological effects. Herein, we comprehensively reviewed the recent studies on the interactions between BP and biomolecules, cells, and animals and summarized various cellular responses, inflammatory/immunological effects, as well as other biological outcomes of BP depending on its own physical properties, exposure routes, and biodistribution. In addition, we also discussed the environmental behaviors and potential risks on environmental organisms of BP. Based on accumulating knowledge on the BP–bio interfaces, this review also summarizes various safer-by-design strategies to change the physicochemical properties including chemical stability and nano–bio interactions, which are critical in tuning the biological behaviors of BP. The better understanding of the biological activity of BP at BP–bio interfaces and corresponding methods to overcome the challenges would promote its future exploration in terms of bringing this new nanomaterial to practical applications.

Chemistry of Phosphorene: Synthesis, Functionalization and Biomedical Applications in an Update Review

“…First, the development of cheap, easy and high yield synthetic strategies is needed for the production of large quantities of few-layer phosphorene sheets, with controlled size and morphology. To date, two of the most promising methods to realize large-scale exfoliation of BP are the electrochemical exfoliation and the shear exfoliation methods, due to their efficiency and scalability [56].…”

“…As far as biomedical applications are concerned, 2D nanomaterials are promising in optical imaging, biosensing, phototherapy, targeted delivery, and other fields [51][52][53][54][55][56][57]. The tunable band gap of phosphorene, which is size-dependent, allows its interaction with the electromagnetic field to be manipulated in a layer-dependent manner, in the ultraviolet (UV) and near-infrared (NIR) regions.…”

Catalysis Mediated by 2D Black Phosphorus Either Pristine or Decorated with Transition Metals Species

“…Although most of the studies have focused on the basic electronic characterization of the devices, BP-based FETs have been successfully applied for sensing [16][17][18] or photodetection. [19][20][21] Thanks to the very low cytotoxicity of black phosphorus in comparison to other 2D materials as graphene and transition metals dichalcogenides [22], and to its photonic properties, the application of BP in the biomedical field has grown exponentially, as recently reviewed by Qu G. and co-workers [23]. The seminal work conducted by Xie Y. et al [24] demonstrated that BP nanosheets are stable in water for a certain time and they can generate efficiently singlet oxygen under the entire visible light region, thus opening the application of BP not only in photocatalysis, but also in photothermal and photodynamic therapy (PDT).…”

“…Thus, BP also represents a good candidate for regenerative medicine [25]. Furthermore, BP has also demonstrated great potential in biosensing, controlled drug release, and antibacterial use [23]. The sp 3 hybridization of phosphorus atoms in BP is also responsible for the presence of a lone pair on each atom.…”

The Nanomaterial-Induced Bystander Effects Reprogrammed Macrophage Immune Function

“…To date, bystander effect studies have focused on post-irradiation effects [1,2], but there is growing evidence that other environmental stressors also induce damage in bystander populations, including heat stresses, photodynamic therapy, genotoxic chemicals, heavy metals, and other multiple stressors [3,4,5,6,7]. The use of nanoparticles in biology continues to increase and release to the environment are inevitable [8,9,10]. Given the inherent interactions between targeted cells and neighboring cells, it is important to understand the nontargeted effects of nanoparticles [9,11,12,13].…”