Graphene: safe or toxic? The two faces of the medal

Abstract

Graphene is considered the future revolutionary material. For its development, it is of fundamental importance to evaluate the safety profile and the impact on health. Graphene is part of a bigger family which has been identified as the graphene family nanomaterials (GFNs). Clarifying the existence of multiple graphene forms allows better understanding the differences between the components and eventually correlating their biological effects to the physicochemical characteristics of each structure. Some in vitro and in vivo studies clearly showed no particular risks, while others have indicated that GFNs might become health hazards. This Minireview critically discusses the recent studies on the toxicity of GFNs to provide some perspective on the possible risks to their future development in materials and biomedical sciences.