Human serum albumin as a probe for surface conditioning (opsonization) of block copolymer-coated microspheres

The adsorption of human serum albumin to polystyrene microspheres sterically stabilized with block copolymers, was investigated using photon correlation spectroscopy and laser doppler anenometry. The block copolymers used were non-ionic surfactants of the poloxamer and poloxamine series made of polyoxyethylene and polyoxypropylene chains. Photon correlation spectroscopy and laser doppler anenometry showed that the coating reduced the adsorption of the protein to the polystyrene microspheres surface. Quantitative studies using 125I-labelled human serum albumin and sodium dodecyl sulphate-polyacrylamide gels (in combination with densitometry), were employed to evaluate the adsorption of human serum albumin to uncoated and coated polystyrene microspheres. They confirmed that the hydrophilic polyoxyethylene steric layer, created by coating with the block copolymers, reduced the adsorption of human serum albumin. Moreover, the amount of human serum albumin adsorbed was related to the polyoxyethylene content of the block copolymers.