Sugar-Functionalized Fullerenes

Being the first member in the family of nanocarbon superstructures, fullerene C60 (refers to C60 hereafter) continues to be a research focus in physics, chemistry, materials science, biology and life science. The readily available functionalization methods that can be realized on C60 further expand the potential applications of C60 in various fields. Carbohydrates distribute widely in a variety of forms in mammalian animals and the glycan-protein interactions play important roles in many biological processes. Covalently attaching sugar units to C60 yields glycofullerenes, which exhibit interesting physicochemical properties and biological activities. Here, we give a comprehensive review on the syntheses, properties and applications of this novel class of C60 derivatives. Directions in which efforts should be devoted to in near future have also been discussed.