Mesoporous Silica Nanoparticles for Drug Delivery and Biosensing Applications

Recent breakthroughs in the synthesis of mesoporous silica materials with controlled particle size, morphology, and porosity, along with their chemical stability, has made silica matrices highly attractive as the structural basis for a wide variety of nanotechnological applications such as adsorption, catalysis, sensing, and separation. In addition, we and others have discovered that surface-functionalized mesoporous silica nanoparticle (MSN) materials can be readily internalized by animal and plant cells without posing any cytotoxicity issue in vitro. These new developments render the possibility of designing a new generation of drug/gene delivery systems and biosensors for intracellular controlled release and imaging applications. Herein we review recent research efforts in developing new MSN-based materials with different surface functionalities targeted for the abovementioned applications. 2. Results and Discussion