Mesoporous silica nanomaterials as cutting-edge nanocarriers for bioactive compounds; structure, synthesis,...

Mesoporous silica materials have been arisen as encouraging nanocarriers (NCs) which can deliver different bioactive compounds (bioactives) in a controllable and sustained way. Particularly, mesoporous silica nanoparticles (MSNPs) are extensively applied as drug NCs since silica has acceptable chemical characteristics, thermal stability, and biocompatibility. Protection of bioactives during passage through the digestive system can be achieved by developing MSNPs and therefore, controlled release of bioactives is an extremely fascinating issue for the field of food science, technology and packaging via MSNPs. The aim of this review is to present the state of the art of existing NCs based on MSNPs and to classify the characteristics of perfect relevant NCs for a precise application, focusing on nutraceutical NCs. Here, various construction methods of MSNPs are described. Furthermore, the characteristics that can influence the release of bioactives from MSNPs into the food matrix or gastrointestinal tract are also discussed. Finally, we review the applications of MSNPs, predominantly in the encapsulation and design of advanced colloidal NCs of bioactives.