Table 1.

Comparison between nonporous SiNPs and MSN. Created based on information from [9, 10, 13]

Property	MSN	Nonporous SiNPs
Pore structure	Ordered mesopores with diameters typically 2–50 nm	Lack of pores
Surface area	High surface area due to porosity	Lower surface area (compared to MSN)
Drug delivery	Controlled release due to pore structure	Release kinetics depend on surface chemistry
Imaging applications	Diverse applications for imaging	Suitable for fluorescence imaging, MRI contrast
Biocompatibility	Generally biocompatible	Generally biocompatible

MRI: Magnetic resonance imaging; MSN: Mesoporous silica nanoparticle; SiNPs: Silica nanoparticles