Biomedical applications of nanostructured porous silicon: a review

Current fabrication and characterization techniques allow the development of nanostructured systems with controlled size, shape and composition. Additionally, modifications can be made to these nanosystems to better suit their integration with biological systems, leading to such interesting properties as enhanced aqueous solubility, biocompatibility or bio-recognition. The particular morphology and overall properties of nanostructured porous silicon allow the use of this material in the fields of drug delivery, eye diseases, tumor imaging, and tissue engineering.