Humanin: A novel functional molecule for the green synthesis of graphene

The synthesis of graphene nanosheets from graphene oxide is an interesting area of nanobiotechnology because graphene-based nanomaterials have potential applications in the biomedical field. In this study, we developed a green, rapid, and simple method for the synthesis of graphene from graphene oxide, which uses the mitochondrial polypeptide humanin as a reducing agent. Graphene was prepared via one-step reduction of graphene oxide under mild conditions in an aqueous solution, and the resulting substance was characterized using a range of analytical procedures. UV-vis absorption spectroscopy confirmed the reduction of graphene oxide to graphene. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy was used to study the changes in the surface functionalities, and X-ray diffraction was used to investigate the crystal structure of graphene. High resolution scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy were also employed to investigate the morphologies of the synthesized grapheme, and Raman spectroscopy was used to evaluate its single- and multi-layer properties. The results described here suggest that the potent reducing agent humanin may be used as a substitute for hydrazine during graphene synthesis, thereby providing a safe, biocompatible and green method for the efficient deoxygenation of graphene oxide that can be used for large-scale production and biomedical applications. (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.