Chemically engineered mesoporous silica nanoparticles-based intelligent delivery systems for theranostic applications in multiple cancerous/non-cancerous diseases

Abstract In recent years, the unprecedented advances of biomedical nanotechnology have spurred the development of drug delivery systems (DDSs) based on multifarious nanomaterials in disease treatment and diagnostic purposes, which simultaneously boost the therapeutic outcome and circumvent the side effects. Among these, mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSNs) are acknowledged as one of the most promising candidates for cargo delivery. Their remarkable intrinsic features, including size and porosity tunability, large surface area, high pore volume, versatile surface functionality as well as biocompatibility, have arouse tremendous research of MSNs as multifunctional delivery platforms. In particular, intelligent MSNs-based controlled delivery systems with stimuli-responsive characteristics hold great promise in personalized precision medicine in clinical applications. Notably, benefiting from the tunable pore size and diversified surface chemistry, MSNs-based systems can transport a variety of therapeutic agents such as small-molecule drug, gene, peptide, as well as protein, which have tremendous potential to treat diverse types of diseases, including carcinoma, bacterial infections (infectious diseases), diabetes, bone disorders, Alzheimer’s disease, etc. In this review, a brief overview of MSNs and their features, together with the discussions on engineering of stimuli-responsive MSNs-based systems for on-demand payload delivery is presented. Further, the application of the state-of-the-art MSNs-based delivery systems in multifarious disease therapeutics (not limited to carcinoma) with a particular focus on recent studies is summarized. Finally, the clinical translation issues encountered by these delivery platforms and their possible solutions together with future perspectives of MSN-based systems in clinics are also mentioned.