Biocompatible Functional Nanostructures for Nanomedicine, Environmental and Energy Applications

A special issue of Applied Nano (ISSN 2673-3501).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 20 February 2026 | Viewed by 784

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
Nanobiotechnology, Nanomedicine, and Nanobioelectronics Laboratory, Department of Experimental Medicine, University of Salento, 73100 Lecce, Italy
Interests: physics applied to biology; nanomaterials and toxicity; green nanomaterials; biophysics of cell membranes; biomaterials; silver and gold nanoparticles
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The development of functional nanostructures is revolutionizing fields ranging from sustainable technologies to human health. Among these, nanomedicine stands out as one of the most promising, offering new solutions for targeted drug delivery, imaging, diagnostics, and theranostics. However, the synthesis of nanomaterials often involves toxic reagents, organic solvents, and energy-intensive processes, raising serious concerns about their safety, sustainability, and long-term biocompatibility.

This Special Issue focuses on the green synthesis of organic, inorganic, and hybrid nanostructures, with particular emphasis on their application in nanomedicine. We welcome contributions that explore environmentally friendly and scalable methods for producing biocompatible, functional nanomaterials using plant extracts, biomolecules, microbial systems, low-energy techniques, and green solvents (such as water, ionic liquids, or deep eutectic solvents).

We encourage the submission of studies demonstrating the biological performance, safety, and therapeutic potential of green-synthesized nanomaterials for:

  • Drug delivery and controlled release;
  • Bioimaging and biosensing;
  • Antimicrobial and anticancer therapies;
  • Theranostic platforms.

In addition, we welcome articles addressing the roles of green-synthesized nanomaterials in environmental remediation (e.g., pollutant degradation, water treatment) and energy-related applications (e.g., catalysis, solar energy conversion, batteries), especially those that highlight multifunctional or dual-purpose nanostructures.

This Special Issue aims to highlight how sustainable nanotechnology can open new avenues to safe and effective nanomedical innovations while also addressing global environmental and energy-related challenges.

Dr. Valeria De Matteis
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • green synthesis
  • biocompatible nanostructures
  • nanomedicine
  • drug delivery
  • bioimaging
  • antimicrobial nanomaterials
  • eco-friendly nanomaterials
  • sustainable nanotechnology
  • hybrid nanocomposites
  • theranostic

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Published Papers (1 paper)

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Research

12 pages, 986 KB  
Article
Structure–Optical Properties and Sustainability Assessment of Carbon Dots Derived from Laurus nobilis Leaves
by Valeria De Matteis, Cristina Baglivo, Silvia Tamborino, Mariafrancesca Cascione, Marco Anni, Paolo Vitali, Giuseppe Negro, Mariaenrica Frigione, Paolo Maria Congedo and Rosaria Rinaldi
Appl. Nano 2025, 6(3), 19; https://doi.org/10.3390/applnano6030019 - 2 Sep 2025
Viewed by 484
Abstract
Carbon dots (CDs) derived from renewable biomass are emerging as sustainable alternatives to traditional nanomaterials for applications in bioimaging, sensing, and photonics. In this study, we reported a one-step synthesis of photoluminescent CDs from Laurus nobilis leaves particularly spread in the Mediterranean area. [...] Read more.
Carbon dots (CDs) derived from renewable biomass are emerging as sustainable alternatives to traditional nanomaterials for applications in bioimaging, sensing, and photonics. In this study, we reported a one-step synthesis of photoluminescent CDs from Laurus nobilis leaves particularly spread in the Mediterranean area. The resulting nanoparticles (NPs) exhibited average diameters of 3–5 nm and high colloidal stability in water. Structural analysis by X-Rays Diffraction revealed the presence of amorphous graphitic domains, while infrared spectroscopy confirmed oxygenated functional groups on the CD surface. Spectrofluorimetric analysis showed excitation-dependent blue–green emission with a maximum at 490 nm that can be applied also as label agents for cells. The environmental sustainability of the synthetic procedure was evaluated through a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), highlighting that the current impacts were primarily associated with electricity consumption, due to the laboratory-scale nature of the process. These impacts are expected to decrease significantly with future scale-up and process optimization. Full article
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