Highly Stable Hierarchically Structured All-Polymeric Lubricant-Infused Films Prevent Thrombosis and Repel...

Area of Science:

• Biomaterials Science
• Surface Chemistry
• Medical Device Engineering

Background:

• Blood-contacting medical devices frequently fail due to thrombus formation and bacterial infections.
• Repellent surfaces are effective in preventing pathogen interaction and device failure.
• Scalable manufacturing of large-area repellent surfaces remains a significant challenge.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop an industrially viable method for creating large-scale, all-polymeric lubricant-infused surfaces.
• To evaluate the efficacy of these surfaces in preventing blood and bacterial contamination.
• To address the limitations in current medical device surface modification techniques.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a swelling-coagulation solvent (S-C) method to create hierarchically structured micro/nano surface features.
• Employed poly(3,3,3-trifluoropropylmethylsiloxane) (PTFS), an omniphobic, nonvolatile silicone oil, as the lubricant.
• Fabricated transparent, flexible, and stable all-polymeric liquid-infused surfaces.

Main Results:

• Achieved significant reduction in blood stains (93%) and bacterial adherence (96.7%) using human whole blood and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA).
• Demonstrated long-term stability and repellent properties of the developed surfaces.
• Successfully created large-scale, easily manufacturable repellent surfaces.

Conclusions:

• The developed all-polymeric lubricant-infused system offers a promising solution for preventing blood and pathogenic contamination on medical devices.
• The S-C method provides a scalable approach for fabricating advanced repellent surfaces.
• This technology has the potential to significantly improve the safety and efficacy of various biomedical devices in healthcare settings.