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Patenting activities and technology commercialization in nanotechnology are being increasingly driven by international collaboration. These collaborative arrangements are often based on patents' portfolio complementarities requiring managerial capabilities in terms of searching for external partners and assessing the patents portfolio. To support technology transfer within or across countries, this study examines a sample of 28,895 patents filed in carbon nanotubes to assess key players, their technology domains and which commercialization strategies Italy-based organizations may deploy since the dominant position of Chinese organizations. Our findings show that significant linkages of the Italian nanotech system appear as being highly centralized around key players within their own cluster. Overall, the results suggest that strengthening the linkages between scientific and corporate actors may eliminate many barriers and accelerate nanotech commercialization by rethinking teaching and training programs for young researchers. Implications for policy-makers are also highlighted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]