Organically Modified Mesoporous Silica Nanoparticles against Bacterial Resistance

Abstract

Bacterial antimicrobial resistance is posed to become a major hazard to global health in the 21st century. An aggravating issue is the stalled antibiotic research pipeline, which requires the development of new therapeutic strategies to combat antibiotic-resistant infections. Nanotechnology has entered into this scenario bringing up the opportunity to use nanocarriers capable of transporting and delivering antimicrobials to the target site, overcoming bacterial resistant barriers. Among them, mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSNs) are receiving growing attention due to their unique features, including large drug loading capacity, biocompatibility, tunable pore sizes and volumes, and functionalizable silanol-rich surface. This perspective article outlines the recent research advances in the design and development of organically modified MSNs to fight bacterial infections. First, a brief introduction to the different mechanisms of bacterial resistance is presented. Then, we review the recent scientific approaches to engineer multifunctional MSNs conceived as an assembly of inorganic and organic building blocks, against bacterial resistance. These elements include specific ligands to target planktonic bacteria, intracellular bacteria, or bacterial biofilm; stimuli-responsive entities to prevent antimicrobial cargo release before arriving at the target; imaging agents for diagnosis; additional constituents for synergistic combination antimicrobial therapies; and aims to improve the therapeutic outcomes. Finally, this manuscript addresses the current challenges and future perspectives on this hot research area.

Macrocycle-Based Antibacterial Materials

“…Porous nanomaterials, such as mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSNs), ,, metal–organic frameworks (MOFs), covalent–organic frameworks (COFs), and organic–inorganic hybrid nanostructures, are receiving growing attention due to their unique features, including tunable morphology and pore sizes, abundant substituent sites, and good biocompatibility. Therefore, on the other hand, macrocyclic molecules can anchor on the surface of porous nanomaterials to regulate the storage, delivery, and release of antibacterial “cargo” . In particular, the heterogeneous hybrid porous nanomaterials provide a uniquely capable approach to fabricating combination antibacterial platforms for multidrug delivery on demand.…”

Recent Advances in Stimuli-Responsive Self-Immolative Polymers for Drug Delivery and Molecular Imaging

“…Mesoporous nanomaterials are highly attractive for drug delivery due to their facile preparation and excellent physicochemical properties, including well-ordered structures, tunable pore sizes, and large surface areas. , The porous structure enables them to load a large amount of cargo, while also raising concerns regarding premature drug release because the loaded drugs are prone to diffusion out in solution. Utilizing stimuli-responsive polymers to plug the pores of mesoporous materials is a successful approach to prevent cargo leakage after drug loading and to achieve spatial, temporal, and dosage control of drug release upon stimulation. , …”