Low-fouling electrospun PLLA films modified with zwitterionic poly(sulfobetaine methacrylate)-catechol conjugates.
In this work, we modified a hydrophobic electrospun poly (l-lactic) acid (PLLA) film with poly (sulfobetaine methacrylate) (pSBMA)-catechol conjugates of different molecular weights to improve the biocompatibility of the film. These conjugates were synthesized via atom transfer radical polymerization. They consist of an ultra-low fouling pSBMA zwitterionic polymer with a surface-adhesive catechol moiety. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, contact angle and scanning electron microscopy experiments were performed to characterize films before and after modification with pSBMA-catechol conjugates. Enzyme-linked immunosorbent and fluorescently-labeled bovine serum albumin were used to study the interactions of proteins with these films. Results showed that low molecular weight zwitterionic pSBMA-catechol conjugates greatly discouraged protein adsorption as shown by use of single protein solutions on PLLA films when the modification was performed in ethanolic Tris-HCl solution. This work offers a convenient and effective method to modify electrospun PLLA films for biomedical applications.



In this work, we report a convenient and effective method to modify electrospun PLLA films using pSBMA-catechol conjugates via "graft-to" for biomedical applications. After pSBMA modification, the PLLA surface becomes hydrophilic with low contact angle and protein adsorption. Results showed that lower molecular weight zwitterionic pSBMA-catechol conjugate led to lower contact angles and better nonfouling properties on PLLA films when the coating was performed in a solution containing ethanol.
Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA; State Key Laboratory of Bioelectronics, Southeast University, Nanjing 210096, China; Department of Histology and Embryology, School of Medicine, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang 212013, China.
Wenjing
W
Yang
Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA.
Harihara S
HS
Sundaram
Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA.
Jean-Rene
JR
Ella
State Key Laboratory of Bioelectronics, Southeast University, Nanjing 210096, China. Electronic address: nyhe1958@163.com.
Nongyue
N
He
Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA. Electronic address: sjiang@uw.edu.
Shaoyi
S
Jiang
D000818:Animals; D002396:Catechols / Q000737:chemistry*; D002417:Cattle; D008567:Membranes, Artificial; D011091:Polyesters / Q000737:chemistry*; D011109:Polymethacrylic Acids / Q000737:chemistry*; D012710:Serum Albumin, Bovine / Q000737:chemistry*
D002396:Catechols; D008567:Membranes, Artificial; D011091:Polyesters; D011109:Polymethacrylic Acids; D012710:Serum Albumin, Bovine; C033616:poly(lactide); C034221:catechol
Electrospun film; Nonfouling; PLLA; Zwitterionic polymer; pSBMA-catechol