Ricerc@Sapienza

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the scientific literature related to the use of graphene and its derivatives in dentistry. Electronic research was carried out on PubMed, Scopus and Web of Science. The studies found included the following topics: the use of graphene in tissue engineering, implantology, as an antibacterial material and in the manufacture of dental materials.

Abstract. – OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study
was to compare both the elastic modulus (EM)
and the flexural strength (FS) of two materials
used in dental prosthesis, namely polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) and polymethylmethacrylate reinforced with graphene (G-PMMA).
MATERIALS AND METHODS: Twenty rectangular samples were manufactured by a milling machine and divided into two groups (n=
10/group): Group 1, PMMA; Group 2, G-PMMA.
The specimens were subjected to a three-point
bending test conducted in the elastic range to

The gradual transition from a reactive to a radiative regime is studied for leaky modes supported by multilayered planar open waveguides.

The high demand for multifunctional devices for smart clothing applications, human motion detection, soft robotics, and artificial electronic skins has encouraged researchers to develop new high-performance flexible sensors. In this work, we fabricated and tested new 3D squeezable Ecoflex® open cell foams loaded with different concentrations of graphene nanoplatelets (GNPs) in order to obtain lightweight, soft, and cost-effective piezoresistive sensors with high sensitivity in a low-pressure regime.

Aim: Fabrication of graphene oxide (GO)-based medical devices coatings that limit adhesion of Candida albicans, a main issue of healthcare-associated infections. Methods: The GO composites noncovalently functionalized with curcumin (CU), a hydrophobic molecule with active antimicrobial action, polyethylene glycol (PEG) that hinders the absorption of biomolecules or a combination of CU and PEG (GO-CU-PEG) were drop-casted on surfaces and antifungal efficacy was assessed. Results: We demonstrate that GO-CU-PEG coatings can reduce fungal adhesion, proliferation and biofilm formation.

A first comparison of the behavior of N-acetyl cysteine (NAC) and ascorbic acid (H2A) towards reduction of graphene oxide (GO) is reported, along with the novel proposition of the associated reaction mechanisms. NAC and H2A are green multi-valent reducing agents, which lead to a mild and biocompatible chemical reduction of oxygenated functional groups in GO. Such reduction has been demonstrated to significantly improve the suitability of GO as a substrate in biomedical applications.

A novel family of nanocarbon‐based materials were designed, synthesized, and probed within the context of charge‐transfer cascades. In details, we implemented fine‐tuned chains of photo‐ and redox‐active constituents. For the first time, we integrated electron‐donating ferrocenes with light‐harvesting /electron‐donating (metallo)porphyrins and electron‐accepting graphene nanoplates (GNP) into multicomponent conjugates. To control the rate of charge flow between the individual building blocks, we bridged them via oligo‐ p ‐phenyleneethynylenes of variable lengths.

Novel silicone-based nanocomposites with varied elastic properties were prepared by blending standard polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) with a lower viscosity component (hydroxyl-terminated PDMS) and integrating a graphene nanoplatelets (GNP) filler modified by strands of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA). The curing behavior of these nanocomposites was studied by dynamic and isothermal differential scanning calorimetry.