In this study we investigate the formation of protein-resistant polymer surfaces, such as aliphatic polyesters, through the deposition of self-assemblies of amphiphilic poly(l-lactide)-b-poly(ethylene oxide), PLLA-b-PEO, copolymers as stable nanoparticles with a kinetically frozen PLLA core on model PLLA surfaces. The length of the PEO chains in the corona was tuned to achieve polymer brushes capable of preventing protein adsorption on PLA-based biomaterials. The spectroscopic ellipsometry, IR and XPS analysis, contact angle goniometry, and AFM proved that the PEO chains adopted a brush structure and were preferably exposed on the surface. The low-fouling properties of the physisorbed PLLA-b-PEO layers approached the ones of reactive grafting methods, as shown by surface plasmon resonance spectroscopy. The anti-fouling properties of the prepared PEO brushes provided sufficient interface to prevent cell adhesion as proved in vitro. Thus, the developed surface coating with PLLA-b-PEO colloids can provide an anti-fouling background for the creation of nanopatterned biofunctionalized surfaces in biomedical applications.

Institute of Macromolecular Chemistry Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic Heyrovsky Sq 2 162 06 Prague 6 Czech Republic

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