Metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) have a good designability, a well-defined pore, stimulus responsiveness, a high surface area, and a controllable morphology. Up to now, various MOFs have been widely used as nanocarriers and have attracted lots of attention in the field of drug delivery and release because of their good biocompatibility and high-drug-loading capacity. Herein, we provide a comprehensive summary of MOF-based nanocarriers for drug delivery and release over the last five years. Meanwhile, some representative examples are highlighted in detail according to four categories, including the University of Oslo MOFs, Fe-MOFs, cyclodextrin MOFs, and other MOFs. Moreover, the opportunities and challenges of MOF-based smart delivery vehicles are discussed. We hope that this review will be helpful for researchers to understand the recent developments and challenges of MOF-based drug-delivery systems.

An easy prepared probe, BHMMP, was designed and synthesized, which displayed a significant fluorescence enhancement (over 38-fold) and obvious color change in the recognition of Al³⁺. The binding ratio of probe BHMMP to Al³⁺ was determined as 1:1, according to Job plot. The binding mechanism was fully clarified by the experiments, such as FT-IR spectrum, ESI–MS analysis, and ¹H NMR titration. A DFT study further confirmed the binding mode of BHMMP to Al³⁺. The limit of detection (LOD) for Al³⁺ was determined as low as 0.70 µM, based on the fluorescence titration of BHMMP. Moreover, the results from real sample experiments, including real water samples, test papers, and cell images, well-demonstrated that BHMMP was capable of sensing Al³⁺ in environmental and biological systems.

Metal–organic frameworks (MOFs), as a class of crystalline organic–inorganic hybrid materials, have demonstrated excellent performance in many fields, resulting in attracting more and more attention. Recently, MOFs have been widely used as functional materials to immobilize aptamers via various interaction forces. The MOF-based aptasensors exhibit outstanding sensing performance, including high sensitivity, excellent selectivity, and good designability, by utilizing the advantages of MOFs and aptamers. Developing MOF-based aptasensors is gradually becoming one of the important research hotspots. Herein, a comprehensive review of aptasensors based on MOFs is provided to summarize recent advancements in this field. Some representative examples are discussed in detail. Furthermore, opportunities and challenges in this field are proposed in this review.

The designed synthesized route of YMUN 6–8.