# Graphene Based Nanocomposites for Bone Tissue Engineering

> **NIH NIH SC3** · PRAIRIE VIEW AGRI & MECH UNIVERSITY · 2020 · $111,750

## Abstract

Project Summary
The proposal deals with the development of simple synthetic procedure for fabricating cation
deficient copper (1) sulfides, Cu2-xS nanorods of varying aspect ratio and the encapsulation in folic
acid conjugated heparin to form a bio-conjugate, HF-CuS . This bio-conjugate will have the
capabilities to “seek and attach itself to tumor cells due to the overexpression of folate receptors in such
cells. The transport ability of such matrix in physiological fluid will also be enhanced due to the
solubility of the heparin, it ability to coat the surface of copper sulfide as a non-cytotoxic, biodegradable
polysaccharide. The Cu2-xS should be able to thermally ablate cancer cells when exposed to near
infra-red laser light (NIR) of desired wavelength. The NIR laser is less absorbed by biological tissues
with typical tissue penetration depth approaching several centimeters for 980 nm light. The work will
be accomplished in three steps: 1. The fabrication of Cu2-xS nanorods with various aspect ratios, will
be accomplished using a combination of 1-DDT (1 dodecane thiol) and t-DDT (tert-dodecane thiol) as
the source of sulfide and also the structure directing ligands through manipulation of growth and
nucleation temperature; 2. While it is well known that the photo thermal conversion efficiency in Cu2-XS
nanoparticles are usually less effective when compared to the Gold nanosystem, however, the plasmon
properties in Cu2-xS are due to carrier holes which can be easily varied through control of the
stoichiometry. This will be accomplished by taking advantage of Cu+ ion mobility in Chalcogenides,
and its surface redox reactions with soluble amines to optimize the plasmonic properties and finally,
the encapsulation of the Cu2-XS nanorods with folic acid conjugated heparin will enhance the matrix
mobility and targeting ability for tumor cells and photo thermal conversion efficiency. Folic acid , the
soluble form of vitamin B, targets tumors in a similar manner to monoclonal antibodies, as foliate
receptors (FRs) are overexpressed in more than 40% of human tumors and are generally absent in
healthy cells . The heparin will enhance the matrix transport properties in biological fluid or simulated
body fluid through coating on the surface of the copper sulfide. If the proposed research is
successfully carried out, a new matrix will emerge for targeted delivery to cancer cells and ablation of
cancer cells more so in areas where surgical procedure or radiation therapy has limited success.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9925837
- **Project number:** 5SC3GM121229-04
- **Recipient organization:** PRAIRIE VIEW AGRI & MECH UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** ADEREMI R OKI
- **Activity code:** SC3 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $111,750
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2017-04-01 → 2021-02-28

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9925837

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9925837, Graphene Based Nanocomposites for Bone Tissue Engineering (5SC3GM121229-04). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9925837. Licensed CC0.

---

*[NIH grants dataset](/datasets/nih-grants) · CC0 1.0*