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Polymers

Polymers

The word polymer is derived from the Greek words “poly” which means “many” and “mer” which means “parts”. Polymers are long chains of molecules composed of repeating units of smaller molecules, known as monomers. They either occur naturally, such as DNA and proteins, or can be constructed synthetically, like plastics. They have varied structural characteristics, such as linear chains, branched chains, or complex networks, that contribute to the...

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Updated: Sep 21, 2025

High-throughput Identification of Bacteria Repellent Polymers for Medical Devices

High-throughput Identification of Bacteria Repellent Polymers for Medical Devices

Published on: November 5, 2016

Protein Resistant Polymeric Biomaterials.

Bryan Khai D Ngo¹, Melissa A Grunlan²

¹Department of Biomedical Engineering and ‡Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas 77843, United States.

ACS Macro Letters

|June 2, 2022

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Developing protein-resistant polymeric biomaterials is key for medical devices. New surface modification strategies and materials show promise, but better in vitro-in vivo correlation is needed.

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High-throughput Identification of Bacteria Repellent Polymers for Medical Devices

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Combinatorial Synthesis of and High-throughput Protein Release from Polymer Film and Nanoparticle Libraries

Combinatorial Synthesis of and High-throughput Protein Release from Polymer Film and Nanoparticle Libraries

Published on: September 6, 2012

Area of Science:

Biomaterials Science
Surface Chemistry
Polymer Science

Background:

Protein adsorption on biomaterials compromises implantable medical device performance and diagnostic accuracy.
Developing polymeric biomaterials with inherent protein resistance is a critical research area.

Purpose of the Study:

To review recent literature on strategies for creating protein-resistant polymeric biomaterials.
To highlight advancements in surface modification techniques and novel hydrophilic polymers.

Main Methods:

Review of surface modification techniques including direct surface modification and bulk modification with surface modifying additives (SMAs).
Incorporation methods discussed: physisorption, hydrogel formation, surface grafting, layer-by-layer assembly, and polymer blending.
Evaluation of emerging hydrophilic polymers beyond poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG), such as polyglycidols, poly(2-oxazoline)s (POx), polyzwitterions, and amphiphilic block copolymers.

Main Results:

Various surface hydrophilization strategies effectively reduce protein adsorption.
Novel polymers like POx and polyzwitterions demonstrate significant potential as alternatives to PEG.
Current in vitro methods require improvement for better correlation with in vivo performance.

Conclusions:

Surface modification and novel hydrophilic polymers offer promising avenues for protein-resistant biomaterials.
Enhanced correlation between in vitro and in vivo protein resistance assessments is crucial for clinical translation.
Future research should focus on utilizing complex protein solutions and more sensitive detection methods.