Influence of a protein corona on the oral pharmacokinetics of testosterone released from mesoporous silica

The formation of a protein corona adsorbed on mesoporous silica particles with 2D and 3D pore structures after incubation in fetal bovine serum is investigated. The compositional properties of the resulting protein-particle complex is determined by using mass spectrometry as a function of serum incubation time. The effect of the adsorbed proteins on the drug release properties of the mesoporous particles when these are used to deliver the hormone TST is examined in dissolution media. Changes to the pharmacokinetic parameters are validated in vivo in a rat model. Small changes to the maximum plasma concentration, terminal half-life, and area under the plasma concentration time curve are observed with pre-incubation of a hard protein corona around the particles. This strategy is used to slow down the release of pharmaceutical drugs loaded onto mesoporous silica, and acts as a formulation strategy for future nanomedical applications involving advanced drug delivery.