A Comprehensive Review of Recent Developments in Biomedical Materials Based on Graphene-Modified Bio-Nanocomposites

Recently, the development of biomedical-engineered materials has received potential attention from different research scholars and industrial experts worldwide. Nanomaterials-modified polymer bio-nanocomposites are considered one of the most attractive biomedical-engineered materials thanks to their remarkable features large surface area, sustainable drug release, easy processing, cost-effectiveness, and biocompatibility. Graphene stands out as a leading nanomaterial that enhances the efficiency of biomedical-engineered materials, due to its exceptional surface functionality, mechanical strength, and electrical conductivity. Innovative graphene-modified bio-nanocomposite materials approach has opened promising avenues for cancer treatment, drug delivery, and biosensing, revolutionizing the landscape of medical interventions. This review highlights the recent progress in the field of biomedical applications, such as drug/gene delivery, tissue engineering, biosensing, bioimaging, and wound healing using graphene bio-nanocomposite materials. Additionally, it provides overview insights on synthesis approaches for preparing graphene bio-nanocomposites based on natural polymers, including polysaccharides, and proteins compared with synthetic polymers. The reported data from preclinical studies of drug-delivery bio-nanocomposites have shown targeted and sustainable drug release to specific cells or tissues with minimum side effects and excellent drug permeability, efficiency, and biocompatibility. Moreover, incorporating graphene enables live monitoring of drug release, fostering personalized medicine approaches and enhancing regenerative medicine. This leads the way for rapid and accurate diagnostics, essential for early disease detection and monitoring. With sustained and intensive research efforts, these promising findings could potentially be translated from research laboratories to clinical applications.