Lubricating Copolymer Brushes Achieving Excellent Antiadhesion and Antibacterial Performance through Hydration and...

Area of Science:

• Biomaterials Science
• Polymer Chemistry
• Medical Device Engineering

Background:

• Catheter-related bacterial infections, venous thrombosis, and vascular abrasion are major complications in interventional therapies.
• These issues lead to interventional therapy failure and pose significant risks to patient health.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop novel lubricating copolymer brushes for catheter surfaces to mitigate complications.
• To investigate the antiadhesion, lubricating, and antibacterial properties of these brushes.

Main Methods:

• Surface-independent construction of polyacrylamide/poly(acrylic acid) copolymer brushes via a three-step method.
• Evaluation of lubricating, anti-blood component adhesion, and antibacterial properties.
• In vitro blood circulation tests and molecular dynamics simulations to assess efficacy and mechanism.

Main Results:

• The 2PAM/6PAA brushes demonstrated significant reductions in friction (94%) and adhesion of blood components (bovine serum albumin 87.2%, fibrin 78.3%).
• Excellent antibacterial efficacy against Staphylococcus aureus (92.3%), Pseudomonas aeruginosa (97.1%), and Escherichia coli (93.5%).
• In vitro tests confirmed reduced blood component adhesion, indicating practical application potential.

Conclusions:

• The developed copolymer brushes offer effective lubrication, antiadhesion, and antibacterial properties for medical devices.
• These brushes show significant potential for antithrombotic and antibacterial modification of blood-contacting medical devices.
• The study elucidates the antiadhesion mechanism, paving the way for improved medical device design.