Development of pH-Responsive Chitosan-Coated Mesoporous Silica Nanoparticles

We synthesized pH-responsive chitosan-coated mesoporous silica nanoparticles. The morphological characterization conveyed that the mesoporous silica was encapsulated within pH-responsive cationic chitosan. Further, the average diameter of chitosan-coated mesoporous silica nanoparticles was approximately 230 nm. The doxorubicin, an anticancer drug, was loaded into the cavities of mesoporous chitosan-coated silica nanoparticles. pH played an important role in regulating the release of doxorubicin from chitosan-coated mesoporous silica nanoparticles, indicating that 53% and 90% doxorubicin were released from chitosan-coated mesoporous silica nanoparticles within 48 h at pH 7.4 and pH 4.4, respectively. We also demonstrated the endocytosis of chitosan-coated mesoporous silica nanoparticles in MCF-7 breast cancer cells. Therefore, this chitosan-coated mesoporous silica nanoparticle could be a powerful tool for pH-responsive controlled release of the anticancer drug.