title: Fabrication of biconcave discoidal silica capsules and their uptake behavior by smooth muscle cells.
abstract: Biconcave discoidal silica microcapsules were fabricated by reaction of tetraethoxysilane (TEOS) on biconcave discoidal Ca(OH)2 templates, followed by core removal. The biconcave discoidal morphology of microcapsules was characterized by confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM) and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The thickness of silica capsule shell can be tuned by two methods, "Gradient concentration" method and "Multi-step growth" method. Through the latter one, the shell thickness can be controlled more effectively. Compared with spherical microcapsules, the biconcave discoidal ones were internalized into smooth muscle cells (SMCs) with a slower rate.
authors.affiliation: MOE Key Laboratory of Macromolecular Synthesis and Functionalization, Department of Polymer Science and Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, China.
authors.forename: Shupeng
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: She
authors.affiliation: MOE Key Laboratory of Macromolecular Synthesis and Functionalization, Department of Polymer Science and Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, China.
authors.forename: Dahai
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Yu
authors.affiliation: MOE Key Laboratory of Macromolecular Synthesis and Functionalization, Department of Polymer Science and Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, China.
authors.forename: Xu
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Han
authors.affiliation: MOE Key Laboratory of Macromolecular Synthesis and Functionalization, Department of Polymer Science and Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, China. Electronic address: tongwj@zju.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Weijun
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Tong
authors.affiliation: MOE Key Laboratory of Macromolecular Synthesis and Functionalization, Department of Polymer Science and Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, China.
authors.forename: Zhengwei
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Mao
authors.affiliation: MOE Key Laboratory of Macromolecular Synthesis and Functionalization, Department of Polymer Science and Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, China. Electronic address: cygao@mail.hz.zj.cn.
authors.forename: Changyou
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Gao
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D008855:Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; D046529:Microscopy, Electron, Transmission; D009130:Muscle, Smooth / Q000166:cytology / Q000378:metabolism*; D012822:Silicon Dioxide / Q000737:chemistry*; D014961:X-Ray Diffraction
chemical_list: D012822:Silicon Dioxide
keywords: Biconcave discoidal; Cellular uptake; Silica microcapsules; Sol–gel