RT Journal Article T1 Features of aminopropyl modified mesoporous silica nanoparticles. Implications on the active targeting capability A1 Cabañas Criado, María Victoria A1 Lozano Borregón, Daniel A1 Torres-Pardo, A. A1 Sobrino, C. A1 González-Calvet, J. A1 Arcos Navarrete, Daniel A1 Vallet Regí, María Dulce Nombre AB Aminopropyl modified mesoporous SiO2 nanoparticles, MCM-41 type, have been synthesized by the co-condensation method from tetraethylorthosilicate (TEOS) and aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APTES). By means of modifying TEOS/APTES ratio we have carried out an in-depth characterization of the nanoparticles as a function of APTES content. Surface charge and nanoparticles morphology were strongly influenced by the amount of APTES and particles changed from hexagonal to bean-like morphology insofar APTES increased. Besides, the porous structure was also affected, showing a contraction of the lattice parameter and pore size, while increasing the wall thickness. These results bring about new insights about the nanoparticles formation during the co-condensation process. The model proposed herein considers that different interactions stablished between TEOS and APTES with the structure directing agent have consequences on pore size, wall thickness and particle morphology. Finally, APTES is an excellent linker to covalently attach active targeting agents such as folate groups. We have hypothesized that APTES could also play a role in the biological behavior of the nanoparticles. So, the internalization efficiency of the nanoparticles has been tested with cancerous LNCaP and non-cancerous preosteoblast-like MC3T3-E1 cells. The results indicate a cooperative effect between aminopropylsilane presence and folic acid, only for the cancerous LNCaP cell line. PB Elsevier SN 0254-0584 YR 2018 FD 2018-12-01 LK https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/12232 UL https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/12232 LA eng NO RESEARCHER ID G-8740-2015 (María Victoria Cabañas Criado)ORCID 0000-0002-4753-5665 (María Victoria Cabañas Criado)RESEARCHER ID B-5081-2017 (Daniel Lozano Borregón)ORCID 0000-0001-5902-9201 (Daniel Lozano Borregón)RESEARCHER ID L-6167-2014 (Daniel Arcos Navarrete)ORCID 0000-0002-5367-7272 (Daniel Arcos Navarrete)RESEARCHER ID M-3378-2014 (María Vallet Regí)ORCID 0000-0002-6104-4889 (María Vallet Regí) NO Unión Europea. H2020 NO Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (MINECO) DS Docta Complutense RD 30 abr 2024