Paper BI-ThP8
Universal Route for Synthesis of Protein Resistant Polymer Brushes by Surface-Initiated Atom Transfer Radical Polymerization

Thursday, October 18, 2007, 5:30 pm, Room 4C

The ability to resist non-specific protein adsorption is an important enabling technology for the design of biosensors and biomedical implants. We have previously shown that surface-initiated atom transfer radical polymerization (SI-ATRP) of oligoethylene glycol methacrylate (OEGMA) can be used to create exceptionally robust and non-fouling surface coatings. In our previous studies, examples of substrates modified with poly(OEGMA) brushes were limited to materials which support the formation of self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) capable of initiating SI-ATRP, such as gold, silicon and metal oxides. However, the surfaces of many technologically relevant materials, such as plastics, do not support SAM formation. This paper presents a simple method to modify the surface of virtually any material with a robust, non-fouling poly(OEGMA) brush by SI-ATRP. Surface initiator layers capable of supporting SI-ATRP were formed by two routes: (1) plasma polymerization of 2-chloroethyl methacrylate and (2) dip-coating of poly(vinylbenzyl chloride). These layers were then used to initiate SI-ATRP of OEGMA. XPS revealed that the poly(OEGMA) brushes formed by either route were indistinguishable from those formed on alkanethiol SAMs on gold. The ability of the resulting poly(OEGMA) layers to resist non-specific protein adsorption was evaluated by incubating the surfaces in undiluted fetal bovine serum for 12 hours-subsequent XPS analysis showed no detectable protein adsorption. Substrates were also incubated for 12 hours in a solution of human umbilical vein endothelial cells in serum containing media and no cell attachment was observed on the poly(OEGMA) coated substrates.