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Mesoporous Silica Nanoparticles: Smart Delivery Platform

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A special issue of Pharmaceutics (ISSN 1999-4923). This special issue belongs to the section "Nanomedicine and Nanotechnology".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (10 March 2023) | Viewed by 11927

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Special Issue Editor

Dr. Eva Rivero-Buceta

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Guest Editor

Instituto de Tecnología Química (UPV-CSIC), Universitat Politècnica de València, Camino de Vera, s/n, 46022 Valencia, Spain
Interests: nanomedicine; mesopororus silica nanoparticles; drug delivery systems; stimuli-responsive materials; cancer treatment and diagnostic; imaging

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSNs) have several attractive properties, including large surface areas, tailorable pore sizes, uniform porosity, easy surface functionalization and good biocompatibility, which make them a very complete system for application in the field of nanomedicine. In this way, it is possible to develop highly innovative and multifunctional systems that can overcome limitations such as toxicity and biodistribution of previously developed systems, thus increasing their efficacy and reducing undesired side effects. This Special Issue, entitled "Mesoporous silica nanoparticles: smart delivery platform", aims to collect and disseminate the latest advancements in this type of nanoparticles. All researchers in the field are cordially encouraged to submit their original manuscript contributions related to mesoporous smart delivery systems (stimuli-responsive systems, theranostic systems, controlled release, etc.) and their biomedical applications, highlighting bioimaging, drug delivery, tissue engineering and therapy. All of them are most welcome.

Dr. Eva Rivero-Buceta
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

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Keywords

mesoporous silica nanoparticles
strategies of synthesis
targeting
smart drug delivery systems
biomedical applications
stimuli-responsive systems
theranostics systems
cancer and other diseases
nanomedicine
controlled release
recent advances

Published Papers (6 papers)

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Research

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17 pages, 3004 KiB

Open AccessArticle

L-lysine Functionalized Mesoporous Silica Hybrid Nanoparticles for pH-Responsive Delivery of Curcumin

by Madhappan Santhamoorthy, Vanaraj Ramkumar, Kokila Thirupathi, Lalitha Gnanasekaran, Vanitha Karuppannan, Thi Tuong Vy Phan and Seong-Cheol Kim

Pharmaceutics 2023, 15(6), 1631; https://doi.org/10.3390/pharmaceutics15061631 - 31 May 2023

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 1550

Abstract

Stimuli-responsive controlled drug delivery systems have attracted the attention of researchers in recent decades due to their potential application in developing efficient drug carriers that are responsive to applied stimuli triggers. In this work, we present the synthesis of L-lysine (an amino acid that combines both amine and carboxylic acid groups in a single unit) modified mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MS@Lys NPs) for the delivery of the anticancer bioactive agent (curcumin, Cur) to cancer cells. To begin, mesoporous silica hybrid nanoparticles (MS@GPTS NPs) with 3-glycidoxypropyl trimethoxy silane (GPTS) were synthesized. The L-lysine groups were then functionalized onto the mesopore channel surfaces of the MS@GPTS NPs through a ring-opening reaction between the epoxy groups of the GPTS and the amine groups of the L-lysine units. Several instrumental techniques were used to examine the structural properties of the prepared L-lysine-modified mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MS@Lys NPs). The drug loading and pH-responsive drug delivery behavior of MS@Lys NPs were studied at different pH levels (pH 7.4, 6.5, and 4.0) using curcumin (Cur) as a model anticancer bioactive agent. The MS@Lys NPs’ in vitro cytocompatibility and cell uptake behavior were also examined using MDA-MB-231 cells. The experimental results imply that MS@Lys NPs might be used in cancer therapy as pH-responsive drug delivery applications. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mesoporous Silica Nanoparticles: Smart Delivery Platform)

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14 pages, 7916 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Layer-by-Layer Hollow Mesoporous Silica Nanoparticles with Tunable Degradation Profile

by Jason William Grunberger and Hamidreza Ghandehari

Pharmaceutics 2023, 15(3), 832; https://doi.org/10.3390/pharmaceutics15030832 - 3 Mar 2023

Cited by 6 | Viewed by 1953

Abstract

Silica nanoparticles (SNPs) have shown promise in biomedical applications such as drug delivery and imaging due to their versatile synthetic methods, tunable physicochemical properties, and ability to load both hydrophilic and hydrophobic cargo with high efficiency. To improve the utility of these nanostructures, there is a need to control the degradation profile relative to specific microenvironments. The design of such nanostructures for controlled combination drug delivery would benefit from minimizing degradation and cargo release in circulation while increasing intracellular biodegradation. Herein, we fabricated two types of layer-by-layer hollow mesoporous SNPs (HMSNPs) containing two and three layers with variations in disulfide precursor ratios. These disulfide bonds are redox-sensitive, resulting in a controllable degradation profile relative to the number of disulfide bonds present. Particles were characterized for morphology, size and size distribution, atomic composition, pore structure, and surface area. No difference was observed between in vitro cytotoxicity profiles of the fabricated nanoparticles at 24 h in the concentration range below 100 µg mL⁻¹. The degradation profiles of particles were evaluated in simulated body fluid in the presence of glutathione. The results demonstrate that the composition and number of layers influence degradation rates, and particles containing a higher number of disulfide bridges were more responsive to enzymatic degradation. These results indicate the potential utility of layer-by-layer HMSNPs for delivery applications where tunable degradation is desired. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mesoporous Silica Nanoparticles: Smart Delivery Platform)

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20 pages, 9090 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Milling-Assisted Loading of Drugs into Mesoporous Silica Carriers: A Green and Simple Method for Obtaining Tunable Customized Drug Delivery

by Basma Moutamenni, Nicolas Tabary, Alexandre Mussi, Jeremy Dhainaut, Carmen Ciotonea, Alexandre Fadel, Laurent Paccou, Jean-Philippe Dacquin, Yannick Guinet and Alain Hédoux

Pharmaceutics 2023, 15(2), 390; https://doi.org/10.3390/pharmaceutics15020390 - 24 Jan 2023

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1709

Abstract

Mesoporous silica (MPS) carriers are considered as a promising strategy to increase the solubility of poorly soluble drugs and to stabilize the amorphous drug delivery system. The development by the authors of a solvent-free method (milling-assisted loading, MAL) made it possible to manipulate the physical state of the drug within the pores. The present study focuses on the effects of the milling intensity and the pore architecture (chemical surface) on the physical state of the confined drug and its release profile. Ibuprofen (IBP) and SBA-15 were used as the model drug and the MPS carrier, respectively. It was found that decreasing the milling intensity promotes nanocrystallization of confined IBP. Scanning electron microscopy and low-frequency Raman spectroscopy investigations converged into a bimodal description of the size distribution of particles, by decreasing the milling intensity. The chemical modification of the pore surface with 3-aminopropyltriethoxisylane also significantly promoted nanocrystallization, regardless of the milling intensity. Combined analyses of drug release profiles obtained on composites prepared from unmodified and modified SBA-15 with various milling intensities showed that the particle size of composites has the greatest influence on the drug release profile. Tuning drug concentration, milling intensity, and chemical surface make it possible to easily customize drug delivery. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mesoporous Silica Nanoparticles: Smart Delivery Platform)

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Graphical abstract

16 pages, 3933 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Synthesis and Electrochemical Evaluation of MSNs-PbAE Nanocontainers for the Controlled Release of Caffeine as a Corrosion Inhibitor

by Martín Aguirre-Pulido, Jorge A. González-Sánchez, Luis R. Dzib-Pérez, Montserrat Soria-Castro, Alejandro Ávila-Ortega and William A. Talavera-Pech

Pharmaceutics 2022, 14(12), 2670; https://doi.org/10.3390/pharmaceutics14122670 - 30 Nov 2022

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1100

Abstract

In this paper, a controlled-release system of caffeine as a corrosion inhibitor was obtained by encapsulating it in MCM-41 silica nanoparticles coated with a poly(β-amino ester) (PbAE), a pH-sensible polymer. Encapsulation was verified using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) and thermogravimetry (TGA). The release of caffeine from the nanocontainers was analyzed in electrolytes with pH values of 4, 5, and 7 using UV–Vis, showing a 21% higher release in acidic electrolytes than in neutral electrolytes, corroborating its pH sensitivity. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and potentiodynamic polarization were used to determine the inhibition mode and efficiency of the encapsulated and free caffeine. The caffeine released from the nanocontainers showed the highest efficiency, which was 85.19%. These results indicate that these nanocontainers could have potential use in smart anticorrosion coating applications. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mesoporous Silica Nanoparticles: Smart Delivery Platform)

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Graphical abstract

18 pages, 3093 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Immobilization of Metronidazole on Mesoporous Silica Materials

by Klára Szentmihályi, Szilvia Klébert, Zoltán May, Eszter Bódis, Miklós Mohai, László Trif, Tivadar Feczkó and Zoltán Károly

Pharmaceutics 2022, 14(11), 2332; https://doi.org/10.3390/pharmaceutics14112332 - 29 Oct 2022

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1439

Abstract

Metronidazole (MTZ) is a widely used drug, but due to its many side effects, there is a growing trend today to use a minimum dose while maintaining high efficacy. One way to meet this demand is to reduce the size of the drug particles. A relatively new method of size reduction is attaching the drug molecules to a mesoporous carrier. In this paper, we studied the fixation of MTZ molecules on mesoporous silica carriers. The drug was immobilized on two mesoporous silica materials (Syloid, SBA-15) with the use of a variety of immersion techniques and solvents. The immobilized drug was subjected to physicochemical examinations (e.g., SEM, XPS, XRD, nitrogen uptake, DSC) and dissolution studies. A significantly higher immobilization was attained on SBA-15 than on a Syloid carrier. Among the processing parameters, the type of MTZ solvent had the highest influence on immobilization. Ultrasonic agitation had a lower but still significant impact, while the concentration of MTZ in the solution made no difference. Under optimal conditions, with the application of an ethyl acetate solution, the surface coverage on SBA-15 reached as much as 91%. The immobilized MTZ exhibited a ca. 10% faster dissolution rate as compared to the pure micron-sized drug particles. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mesoporous Silica Nanoparticles: Smart Delivery Platform)

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Review

Jump to: Research

18 pages, 1203 KiB

Open AccessReview

Mesoporous Silica Nanoparticles as a Gene Delivery Platform for Cancer Therapy

by Nisar Ul Khaliq, Juyeon Lee, Joohyeon Kim, Yejin Kim, Sohyeon Yu, Jisu Kim, Sangwoo Kim, Daekyung Sung and Hyungjun Kim

Pharmaceutics 2023, 15(5), 1432; https://doi.org/10.3390/pharmaceutics15051432 - 8 May 2023

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 3203

Abstract

Cancer remains a major global health challenge. Traditional chemotherapy often results in side effects and drug resistance, necessitating the development of alternative treatment strategies such as gene therapy. Mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSNs) offer many advantages as a gene delivery carrier, including high loading capacity, controlled drug release, and easy surface functionalization. MSNs are biodegradable and biocompatible, making them promising candidates for drug delivery applications. Recent studies demonstrating the use of MSNs for the delivery of therapeutic nucleic acids to cancer cells have been reviewed, along with their potential as a tool for cancer therapy. The major challenges and future interventions of MSNs as gene delivery carriers for cancer therapy are discussed. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Mesoporous Silica Nanoparticles: Smart Delivery Platform)

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