Protein Repellency of Well-Defined, Concentrated Poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) Brushes by the Size-Exclusion Effect

Crosslinking Polymer Brushes with Ethylene Glycol-Containing Segments: Influence on Physicochemical and Antifouling Properties

The introduction of different types and concentrations of crosslinks within poly(hydroxyethyl methacrylate) (PHEMA) brushes influences their interfacial, physicochemical properties, ultimately governing their adsorption of proteins. PHEMA brushes and brush-hydrogels were synthesized by surface-initiated, atom-transfer radical polymerization (SI-ATRP) from HEMA, with and without the addition of di(ethylene glycol) dimethacrylate (DEGDMA) or tetra(ethylene glycol) dimethacrylate (TEGDMA) as crosslinkers. Linear (pure PHEMA) brushes show high hydration and low modulus and additionally provide an efficient barrier against nonspecific protein adsorption. In contrast, brush-hydrogels are stiffer and less hydrated, and the presence of crosslinks affects the entropy-driven, conformational barrier that hinders the surface interaction of biomolecules with brushes. This leads to the physisorption of proteins at low concentrations of short crosslinks. At higher contents of DEGDMA or in the presence of longer TEGDMA-based crosslinks, brush-hydrogels recover their antifouling properties due to the increase in interfacial water association by the higher concentration of ethylene glycol (EG) units.

In Vitro Endothelialization Test of Biomaterials Using Immortalized Endothelial Cells

Functionalizing biomaterials with peptides or polymers that enhance recruitment of endothelial cells (ECs) can reduce blood coagulation and thrombosis. To assess endothelialization of materials in vitro, primary ECs are generally used, although the characteristics of these cells vary among the donors and change with time in culture. Recently, primary cell lines immortalized by transduction of simian vacuolating virus 40 large T antigen or human telomerase reverse transcriptase have been developed. To determine whether immortalized ECs can substitute for primary ECs in material testing, we investigated endothelialization on biocompatible polymers using three lots of primary human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC) and immortalized microvascular ECs, TIME-GFP. Attachment to and growth on polymer surfaces were comparable between cell types, but results were more consistent with TIME-GFP. Our findings indicate that TIME-GFP is more suitable for in vitro endothelialization testing of biomaterials.

Temperature Dependence of the Surface and Volume Hydrophilicity of Hydrophilic Polymer Brushes

The temperature-dependence of the volume and surface hydrophilicity of a series of water-swollen dense polymer brushes is measured by contact angle measurements in the captive bubble configuration, by ellipsometry, and by quartz crystal microbalance with dissipation monitoring (QCM-D). Thermoresponsive poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAM) and poly(di(methoxyethoxy)ethyl methacrylate) (PMEO2MA), strongly hydrophilic poly(N,N-dimethylacrylamide) (PDMA) and poly(oligo(ethylene glycol) methacrylate) (POEGMA), and weakly hydrophilic poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) (PHEMA) brushes were synthesized by surface-initiated atom-transfer radical polymerization (SI-ATRP). Conditions leading to reproducible measurements of the contact angle are first provided, giving access to the surface hydrophilicity. Volume hydrophilicity is quantified by measuring the swelling of the brushes, either by QCM-D or by ellipsometry. A model-free methodology is proposed to analyze the QCM-D data. Comparison between the acoustic and optical swelling coefficients shows that QCM-D is sensitive to the maximal thickness of swollen brushes, while ellipsometry provides an integral thickness. Diagrams of surface versus volume hydrophilicity of the brushes finally lead to identify two types of behavior: strongly water-swollen brushes exhibit a progressive decrease of volume hydrophilicity with temperature, while surface hydrophilicity changes moderately; weakly water-swollen brushes have a close-to-constant volume hydrophilicity, while surface hydrophilicity decreases with temperature. Thermoresponsive brushes abruptly switch from one behavior to the other, and do not exhibit an abrupt change of surface hydrophilicity across their collapse transition contrarily to a common erroneous belief. In general, there is no direct correlation between surface and volume hydrophilicity, because surface properties are dependent on the details of conformation and composition at the surface, whereas volume properties are averaged over a finite region within the brush.

Thermoresponsive anionic block copolymer brushes with a strongly anionic bottom segment for effective interactions with biomolecules

Thermoresponsive anionic block copolymer brushes were prepared on silica bead surfaces by multistep surface-initiated atom-transfer radical polymerization. The anionic properties of the prepared brushes changed with temperature changes.

Concentrated polymer brushes do not induce the expression of inflammatory and angiogeneic genes in human umbilical vein endothelial cells

OBJECTIVE

When polymer brushes are applied as the inner coating for artificial blood vessels, they may induce unwanted responses in vascular endothelial cells continuously exposed to the polymer surface. Accordingly, we have examined the in vitro effect of non-biofouling concentrated polymer brushes (CPBs) on pro-inflammatory and angiogenic responses of human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs).

RESULTS

Micro-patterned CPBs were prepared on silicon wafers using biocompatible polymers, poly(poly(ethylene glycol)methyl ether methacrylate) (PPEGMA) and poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) (PHEMA). HUVECs were cultured on PPEGMA-CPBs and PHEMA-CPBs with different channel widths (20, 50, and 80 µm) and analyzed for mRNA expression of the pro-inflammatory cytokines IL-6 and IL-8 and angiogeneic vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF). Irrespective of channel width, PHEMA-CPBs reduced the expression of all target genes, whereas PPEGMA-CPBs reduced VEGF and did not affect IL-6 and IL-8 levels.

CONCLUSION

Micro-patterned CPBs, irrespective of chemical structure or adhesion area, do not induce the expression of important pro-inflammatory and angiogenic mediators in endothelial cells.

Synthesis and Postpolymerization Modification of Thermoresponsive Coatings Based on Pentaerythritol Monomethacrylate: Surface Analysis, Wettability, and Protein Adsorption

Properties of novel temperature-responsive hydroxyl-containing poly(pentaerythritol monomethacrylate) (PPM) coatings, polymerized from oligoperoxide grafted to glass surface premodified with (3-aminopropyl)triethoxysilane, are presented. Molecular composition, chemical state, thickness, and wettability are examined with time of flight-secondary ion mass spectrometry (ToF-SIMS), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), ellipsometry, and contact angle measurements, respectively. Temperature-induced changes in hydrophobicity of grafted PPM brushes are revealed by water contact angle and ellipsometric measurements. Partial postpolymerization modification of hydroxyl groups (maximum a few percent), performed with acetyl chloride or pyromellitic acid chloride, is demonstrated to preserve thermal response of coatings. Adsorption of bovine serum albumin to PPM brushes, observed with fluorescence microscopy, is higher than on glass in contrast to similar hydroxyl-containing layers reported as nonfouling. Enhanced and temperature-controlled protein adsorption is obtained after postpolymerization modification with pyromellitic acid chloride.

Surface functionalization of quantum dots with fine-structured pH-sensitive phospholipid polymer chains

To add novel functionality to quantum dots (QDs), we synthesized water-soluble and pH-responsive block-type polymers by reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) polymerization. The polymers were composed of cytocompatible 2-methacryloyloxyethyl phosphorylcholine (MPC) polymer segments, which contain a small fraction of active ester groups and can be used to conjugate biologically active compounds to the polymer, and pH-responsive poly(2-(N,N-diethylamino) ethyl methacrylate (DEAEMA)) segments. One terminal of the polymer chain had a hydrophobic alkyl group that originated from the RAFT initiator. This hydrophobic group can bind to the hydrophobic layer on the QD surface. A fluorescent dye was conjugated to the polymer chains via the active ester group. The block-type polymers have an amphiphilic nature in aqueous medium. The polymers were thus easily bound to the QD surface upon evaporation of the solvent from a solution containing the block-type polymer and QDs, yielding QD/fluorescence dye-conjugated polymer hybrid nanoparticles. Fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) between the QDs (donors) and the fluorescent dye molecules (acceptors) was used to obtain information on the conformational dynamics of the immobilized polymers. Higher FRET efficiency of the QD/fluorescent dye-conjugated polymer hybrid nanoparticles was observed at pH 7.4 as compared to pH 5.0 due to a stretching-shrinking conformational motion of the poly(DEAEMA) segments in response to changes in pH. We concluded that the block-type MPC polymer-modified nanoparticles could be used to evaluate the pH of cells via FRET fluorescence based on the cytocompatibility of the MPC polymer.

Fibroblast adhesion on ECM-derived peptide modified poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) brushes: ligand co-presentation and 3D-localization

Polymer brushes prepared via surface-initiated polymerization of 2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate are powerful platforms for the fabrication of model biointerfaces to study cell-substrate interactions. In this manuscript, the versatility of surface-initiated polymerization and the poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) (PHEMA) polymer brush platform are used to address two fundamental questions, viz. the effects of ligand co-presentation and of the 3D localization of biochemical cues on cell behavior. Using a series of PHEMA brushes that present RGD and PHSRN ligands in various relative surface concentrations, the present study unequivocally demonstrates that: (i) co-presentation of PHSRN cues on an RGD functionalized substrate enhances cell adhesion and (ii) this synergetic effect is highest when the two ligands are presented at equal surface concentrations. In the second part of this study, adhesion of 3T3 fibroblasts on a series of PHEMA brushes that present the RGD ligand at a distance of 12, 23 or 42 nm away from the cell substrate interface is investigated. While cells were found to adhere to surfaces that presented the cell adhesive peptides at distances up to 23 nm from the interface, polymer brushes that contained the RGD ligands 42 nm away from the interface did not support cell adhesion.

Fabrication and performance study of a zwitterionic polyimide antifouling ultrafiltration membrane

The design and synthesis of a zwitterionic polyimide open up new avenues for development of antifouling membranes.

Utilization of star-shaped polymer architecture in the creation of high-density polymer brush coatings for the prevention of platelet and bacteria adhesion

We demonstrate utilization of star-shaped polymers as high-density polymer brush coatings and their effectiveness to inhibit the adhesion of platelets and bacteria. Star polymers consisting of poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) (PHEMA) and/or poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA), were synthesized using living radical polymerization with a ruthenium catalyst. The polymer coatings were prepared by simple drop casting of the polymer solution onto poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) surfaces and then dried. Among the star polymers prepared in this study, the PHEMA star polymer (star-PHEMA) and the PHEMA/PMMA (mol. ratio of 71/29) heteroarm star polymer (star-H71M29) coatings showed the highest percentage of inhibition against platelet adhesion (78-88% relative to noncoated PET surface) and Escherichia coli (94-97%). These coatings also showed anti-adhesion activity against platelets after incubation in Dulbecco's phosphate buffered saline or surfactant solution for 7 days. In addition, the PMMA component of the star polymers increased the scratch resistance of the coating. These results indicate that the star-polymer architecture provides high polymer chain density on PET surfaces to prevent adhesion of platelets and bacteria, as well as coating stability and physical durability to prevent exposure of bare PET surfaces. The star polymers provide a simple and effective approach to preparing anti-adhesion polymer coatings on biomedical materials against the adhesion of platelets and bacteria.

Quantitative evaluation of interaction force between functional groups in protein and polymer brush surfaces

To understand interactions between polymer surfaces and different functional groups in proteins, interaction forces were quantitatively evaluated by force-versus-distance curve measurements using atomic force microscopy with a functional-group-functionalized cantilever. Various polymer brush surfaces were systematically prepared by surface-initiated atom transfer radical polymerization as well-defined model surfaces to understand protein adsorption behavior. The polymer brush layers consisted of phosphorylcholine groups (zwitterionic/hydrophilic), trimethylammonium groups (cationic/hydrophilic), sulfonate groups (anionic/hydrophilic), hydroxyl groups (nonionic/hydrophilic), and n-butyl groups (nonionic/hydrophobic) in their side chains. The interaction forces between these polymer brush surfaces and different functional groups (carboxyl groups, amino groups, and methyl groups, which are typical functional groups existing in proteins) were quantitatively evaluated by force-versus-distance curve measurements using atomic force microscopy with a functional-group-functionalized cantilever. Furthermore, the amount of adsorbed protein on the polymer brush surfaces was quantified by surface plasmon resonance using albumin with a negative net charge and lysozyme with a positive net charge under physiological conditions. The amount of proteins adsorbed on the polymer brush surfaces corresponded to the interaction forces generated between the functional groups on the cantilever and the polymer brush surfaces. The weakest interaction force and least amount of protein adsorbed were observed in the case of the polymer brush surface with phosphorylcholine groups in the side chain. On the other hand, positive and negative surfaces generated strong forces against the oppositely charged functional groups. In addition, they showed significant adsorption with albumin and lysozyme, respectively. These results indicated that the interaction force at the functional group level might be a suitable parameter for understanding protein adsorption.

Elastic repulsion from polymer brush layers exhibiting high protein repellency

Hydrophilic poly(2-methacryloyloxyethyl phosphorylcholine) (PMPC) and poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) (PHEMA) brush layers with different thicknesses and graft densities were prepared to construct a model surface to elucidate protein-surface interactions. In particular, we focused on the steric repulsion of hydrophilic polymer layers as one of the surface properties that strongly influence protein adsorption and employed force-versus-distance (f-d) curve measurements obtained via atomic force microscopy to quantitatively evaluate the steric repulsion force, which is also referred to as the "elastic repulsion energy." We also analyzed direct interactions between the surface and proteins via the f-d curve, because these interactions trigger the protein-adsorption phenomenon. Protein-surface interactions were extremely suppressed at surfaces with high elastic repulsion energies and highly dense polymer brush structures, which is in contrast to those at surfaces with low elastic repulsion energies and low density of the grafted polymer layers. These results indicate that the elastic repulsion from the grafted polymer layer at the surface is an important parameter for controlling protein-surface interactions and protein adsorption phenomenon.

Thin film hydrophilic electroactive polymer coatings for bioelectrodes

Hybrids of conducting polymers (CPs) and hydrogels have been explored as soft electroactive coatings for improving the mechanical and electrical performance of metallic implant electrodes. However, hydrogel fabrication methods pose a significant challenge to producing thin (sub-micron) coatings, resulting in bulky implants, which displace a large volume of tissue. To address this issue, polymer brushes of poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) (pHEMA) were covalently bound to a gold electrode using surface initiated atom-transfer radical-polymerization (SI-ATRP). The CP poly(3,4-ethylene dioxythiophene) (PEDOT) was electropolymersied through the brush layer to form a thin hydrophilic coating. The electrical properties of the hybrid were shown to be superior to homogenous CPs and the surface chemistry was varied as a function of PEDOT deposition time to present a graded composition of pHEMA and PEDOT. The resulting material was shown to support the attachment and differentiation of model neural cells, signifying the potential of these hybrid coatings for bioelectrode applications.

AFM-based force spectroscopy on polystyrene brushes: effect of brush thickness on protein adsorption

Herein we present a study on nonspecific binding of proteins at highly dense packed hydrophobic polystyrene brushes. In this context, an atomic force microscopy tip was functionalized with concanavalin A to perform single-molecule force spectroscopy measurements on polystyrene brushes with thicknesses of 10 and 60 nm, respectively. Polystyrene brushes with thickness of 10 nm show an almost two times stronger protein adsorption than brushes with a thickness of 60 nm: 72 pN for the thinner and 38 pN for the thicker layer, which is in qualitative agreement with protein adsorption studies conducted macroscopically by fluorescence microscopy.

Surface modifications by polymers for biomolecule conjugation

Polymeric coatings, usually referred as tridimensional chemistries, provide homogenous surface derivatization methods presenting a high reactive group concentration and resulting in an increased binding capacity of targets. Furthermore, they act as linkers distributing the bound probe also in the axial position, thus causing a faster reaction with the target involved in biomolecular recognition and can be engineered to custom tailor their properties for specific applications. Most approaches which aim at attaching polymers to a surface use a system where the polymer carries an "anchor" group either as an end group or in a side chain. This anchor group can reacts with appropriate sites at the substrate surface, thus yielding surface-attached monolayers of polymer molecules (termed "grafting to"). Another technique is to carry out a polymerization reaction in the presence of a substrate onto which monomers had been attached leading to the so called "grafting from" approach. In this chapter, protocols to functionalize glass and silicon surfaces by "grafting to" as well as by "grafting-from" approach are shown using copolymers made of N,N-dimethylacrylamide (DMA) or Glycidyl methacrylate (GMA) as the polymer backbone, N-acryloyloxysuccinimide (NAS) as reactive group, and 3-(trimethoxysilyl)propyl methacrylate (MAPS) or 3-mercaptopropyl trimethoxy silane (MPS) as anchoring groups.

Thermally responsive microcarriers with optimal poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) grafted density for facilitating cell adhesion/detachment in suspension culture

Large-scale cell culture of anchorage-dependent cells based on microcarriers is a crucial method for industrial-scale cell culture and large-scale expansion of therapeutic cells. Previously, the authors developed temperature-responsive microcarriers bearing poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PIPAAm)-grafted chains on their outer surface for the non-invasive detachment of cultured cells through temperature reduction without proteolytic enzyme treatment. In this study, to further facilitate cell adhesion and thermally induced detachment efficiency, PIPAAm-grafted beads with various grafted amounts and various grafted PIPAAm chain densities were prepared. Contact angle measurements at different temperatures revealed that the magnitude of the contact angle change from 37 to 20 °C decreased with increasing brush density. Additionally, the amount of fibronectin adsorbed on the bead surface decreased with increasing brush density. Chinese hamster ovary (CHO-K1) cells adhered to the surface of PIPAAm-grafted beads at 37 °C, and a negligible difference in the cell adhesive property was observed by varying the brush density of the PIPAAm-grafted beads. When the temperature was reduced to 20 °C, the adhering cells were found to detach themselves from the PIPAAm-grafted bead surfaces. Of particular interest, PIPAAm-grafted beads with intermediate brush density exhibited the highest efficiency of thermally induced cell detachment. Thus, the brush density of PIPAAm-grafted beads strongly affected the efficiency of thermally induced cell detachment.

Poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) brush surface for specific and oriented adsorption of glycosidases

We present a detailed picture to screen general ligands from simple chemicals for fabricating affinity surface to glycosidase enzymes. The surface was constructed by grafting poly(2-hydroxyethyl methacrylate) (PHEMA) brush on SPR gold chip via surface-initiated atom-transfer radical polymerization, after which poly(methoxyethyl methacrylate) (PMEMA) and poly(oligo(ethylene glycol) methacrylate) (POEGMA) brushes were also prepared for comparison. SPR measurements were adopted to monitor the early-stage adsorption of two glycosidases and three other typical proteins. PHEMA resists the adsorption of lysozyme, bovine serum albumin, and fibrinogen, while it is capable of specifically adsorbing β-glucosidase (GLU) and β-galactosidase (GAL). These are quite different from the nonspecific adsorption of PMEMA and the anti-nonspecific adsorption of POEGMA to the studied proteins, because PHEMA is the acceptor substrate of the glycosidases. About 69.6 and 93.7 ng/cm(2) of GAL and GLU are adsorbed on the PHEMA brush surface, of which more than 49.6 ng/cm(2) is remained after washing with PBS. The specific adsorption process is appropriately described by Freundlich isothermal model rather than Langmuir one, and is also indicated to be spontaneous, endothermic, and entropy driven through thermodynamic studies. Taking into account all stated results above, we propose that molecular recognition takes place between the hydroxyl groups of PHEMA and the active sites of glycosidases, which subsequently enables the oriented adsorption of glycosidases on the brush surface. The adsorbed enzyme can be effectively eluted with 1.0 M aqueous solution of ethanol. Our findings open the door to the further development in the design of novel acceptor substrate-ligand affinity chromatography for enzyme purification.

Surface-grafted poly(acrylic acid) brushes as a precursor layer for biosensing applications: effect of graft density and swellability on the detection efficiency

Carboxyl groups along poly(acrylic acid) (PAA) brushes attached to the surface of a gold-coated substrate served as the precursor moieties for the covalent immobilization of amino-functionalized biotin or bovine serum albumin (BSA) to form a sensing probe for streptavidin (SA) or anti-BSA detection, respectively. Surface-grafted PAA brushes were obtained by acid hydrolysis of poly(tert-butyl acrylate) brushes, formerly prepared by surface-initiated atom transfer radical polymerization of tert-butyl acrylate. As determined by surface plasmon resonance, the PAA brushes immobilized with functionalized biotin or BSA probes not only showed good binding with the designated target analytes but also maintained a high resistance to nonspecific protein adsorption, especially those PAA brushes with a high surface graft density. Although the probe binding capacity can be raised as a function of the graft density of the PAA brushes or the amount of carboxyl groups along the PAA chains, the accessibility of the target analyte to the immobilized probe was limited at the high graft density of the PAA brushes. The effect was far more apparent for the BSA-anti-BSA probe-analyte pair than for the much smaller biotin-SA probe-analyte pair. The impact of the swellability of the PAA brushes, as tailored by the degree of carboxyl group activation, on both the sensing probe immobilization and analyte detection was also addressed. This investigation demonstrated that PAA brushes having a defined graft density have a promising potential as a precursor layer for biosensing applications.