New insights into the degradation mechanism of metal-organic frameworks drug carriers.

A versatile method based on Raman microscopy was developed to follow the degradation of iron carboxylate Metal Organic Framework (MOF) nano- or micro-particles in simulated body fluid (phosphate buffer). The analysis of both the morphology and chemical composition of individual particles, including observation at different regions on the same particle, evidenced the formation of a sharp erosion front during particle degradation. Interestingly, this front separated an intact non eroded crystalline core from an amorphous shell made of an inorganic network. According to Mössbauer spectrometry investigations, the shell consists essentially of iron phosphates. Noteworthy, neither drug loading nor surface modification affected the integrity of the tridimensional MOF network. These findings could be of interest in the further development of next generations of MOF drug carriers.