title: Syntheses and biomedical applications of hollow micro-/nano-spheres with large-through-holes.
abstract: Hollow micro-/nano-spheres with large-through-holes in shells (denoted as HMLS) have demonstrated great potential in biomedical applications owing to the combination of hollow structure and their porous shells. In this review, we provide a comprehensive overview of synthesis methods of HMLS obtained from the template-directed approach, shell-breaking method, Ostwald ripening and galvanic replacement primarily based on the formation mechanism of the large-through-holes in the shell. We further discuss the biomedical applications of HMLS including guest adsorption and encapsulation of proteins, drug/gene delivery, biomedical imaging, and theranostics. We conclude this review with some perspectives on the future research and development of the HMLS with desired morphologies and properties.
authors.affiliation: Department of Materials Science and State Key Laboratory of Molecular Engineering of Polymers, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, P. R. China. chenmin@fudan.edu.cn lmw@fudan.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Yinsong
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Si
authors.affiliation: Department of Materials Science and State Key Laboratory of Molecular Engineering of Polymers, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, P. R. China. chenmin@fudan.edu.cn lmw@fudan.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Min
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Department of Materials Science and State Key Laboratory of Molecular Engineering of Polymers, Fudan University, Shanghai 200433, P. R. China. chenmin@fudan.edu.cn lmw@fudan.edu.cn.
authors.forename: Limin
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Wu
mesh_terms: D035843:Biomedical Research; D050997:Nanomedicine; D054118:Nanospheres / Q000737:chemistry*; D010316:Particle Size; D016062:Porosity; D013499:Surface Properties