Bioavailability enhancement of poorly soluble drugs with mesoporous silicon

Abstract

An emerging strategy to address solubility-related bioavailability issues is the formulation of weakly water-soluble medications utilizing ordered mesoporous silica materials. Because of their large surface areas and capacity to physically adsorb large drug loads in either molecular or amorphous form, mesoporous silica carriers enable molecular state drug release in aqueous gastrointestinal environments. They also have the potential to supersaturate, which promotes improved absorption and increased bioavailability. They are useful for creating drug delivery systems with steady and beneficial preclinical developments. Because of its unique physicochemical properties, including high porosity, large surface area, adjustable pore size and dimensions, good biocompatibility, and significant loading capacity, mesoporous silicon material effectively encapsulates, controls, and occasionally delivers biologic agents intracellularly for clinical use. This chapter provides an overview of the most recent developments in fabrication of mesoporous silicon, its potential for drug delivery, mechanism for increasing the bioavailability of poorly soluble drugs, the biocompatibility of mesoporous silicon both in vivo and in vitro, and their usage as diagnostic tools. It has been shown that silica may sustainably and precisely store and release medications, including antibiotics. Therefore the potential benefits of mesoporous silicon in drug transport can potentially be increased by its production and chemical modifications for biomedical applications. © 2026 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.