Abstract: The present invention discloses a silica particle having a diameter less than or equal to 2 ??, wherein the particle is spherical and comprises interconnected pores having a diameter in the range from 50 nm to 300 nm. The silica particle is preferably produced by spray pyrolysis (=spray drying) of a silica colloid. In the production process, porosity is introduced by means of an inorganic salt, such as NaCl, KCI, LiCl, NaNO3 or Ll NO3, which serves as a pore template. The silica particle may further be functionalized with proteins, peptides, nucleic acids, polysaccharides and proteoglycans, preferably concanavalin A or avidin. The present invention further discloses the use of the silica particle in chromatography, in particular in affinity chromatography.