Super-hydrophilic silicone hydrogels with interpenetrating poly(2-methacryloyloxyethyl phosphorylcholine) networks

We synthesized silicone hydrogels from 2-methacryloyloxyethyl phosphorylcholine (MPC) and bis(trimethylsilyloxy)methylsilylpropyl glycerol methacrylate (SiMA) using two methods: random copolymerization with a small amount of cross-linker (P(SiMA-co-MPC)) and construction of an interpenetration network (IPN) structure composed of cross-linked poly(MPC)(PMPC) chains and cross-linked poly(SiMA)(PSiMA) chains (PSiMA-ipn-PMPC). The polymerization was carried out by photoreaction. The surface hydrophilicity and water absorbability of P(SiMA-co-MPC) increased with an increase in the MPC unit composition. On the other hand, in the case of PSiMA-ipn-PMPC, a super-hydrophilic surface was obtained by the surface enrichment of MPC units. The optical and mechanical properties of PSiMA-ipn-PMPC are suitable for use as a material for preparing contact lenses. In addition, the oxygen permeability of PSiMA-ipn-PMPC remains high because of the PSiMA chains. The MPC units at the surface of the hydrogels reduce protein adsorption effectively. From these results for PSiMA-ipn-PMPC, we confirmed that it has the potential for application to silicone hydrogel contact lenses.