Mesoporous silica with fibrous morphology: a multifunctional core–shell platform for biomedical applications

Abstract

Multifunctional mesoporous silica nanocomposites are attractive carriers for targeted drug delivery in nanomedicine. Although promising developments have been made in the fabrication of multifunctional mesoporous silica nanocomposites, the design and mass production of novel multifunctional carriers are still challenging. This paper reports the facile one-pot fabrication of a multifunctional inorganic composite composed of superparamagnetic Fe3O4 nanoparticles and coated dye-functionalized mesoporous silica with a high specific surface area. The resulting composite particles had a tunable particle size, special open pore channels with high specific surface area, which is quite favorable for drug loading and release properties, as well as luminescent and superparamagnetic properties suitable for targeted drug delivery and tracking. This composite exhibited low toxicity, suggesting potential biomedical applications.