A facile route for the synthesis of high-yield mesoporous silica nanospheres (MSNs) is reported. This route involves the use of gelatin as a particle suppressant and dispersant. Gelatin has been observed to hinder the growth of the mesoporous silica particles and helps to control the size of spherical particles from micrometer scale (0.14-0.66 mu m) to nanosize (34-82 nm) by promoting the mass ratio of gelatin to template agent cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB), from 0 to 1.0. Moreover, no particle agglomeration was detected because of the excellent dispersion effect of gelatin. MSN has a high specific surface area (1409 m(2) g(-1)) and a large pore volume (0.939 cm(3) g(-1)). It is proposed that the evolution of the size and dispersity of the MSN particles strongly depends on the interaction between gelatin, CTAB, and silica source in the synthetic system.