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• Dextran coating accomplishes stable dispersion of C 60 in water upto 72 h. • Dex-C 60 exhibits dose-dependent toxicity on C6 glial cells. • Dex-C 60 exposure results in increased ROS generation. • Particle treatment failed to compromise cell morphology and cytoskeletal integrity. • No evident genotoxic potential. Elevated application potential of fullerene C 60 paved the way to think on its adverse effect when it reaches to biological system and environment. Though fullerenes are insoluble in water, various strategies are employed to make it soluble. Method of solubilization with organic solvents, yield cytotoxic responses both in vitro and in vivo. In this study, dextran was used to stabilize C 60 particle. Fourier transformed-infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) and transition electron microscopy (TEM) were used for characterization and it confirms effective surface stabilization and morphological characteristics. This was followed by various cytotoxicity studies to evaluate its bio-nano interactions. The results of the study suggest that the dextran stabilized C 60 nanoparticles (Dex-C 60) forms uniform suspension in water and was stable up to 72 h. The C6 glial cell-Dex-C 60 interactions indicated that the Dex-C 60 nanoparticles penetrate deeper into the cells and cause dose dependent toxic response. The result of the study recommended that Dex-C 60 nanoparticles should undergo intensive risk assessment before biomedical applications and should take proper safety measure to avoid its entry to the environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]