Abstrakt
A new route for coating various substrates with antifouling polymer layers was developed. Polymer brushes of hydroxy- and methoxy-capped oligoethyleneglycol methacrylate and carboxybetaine acrylamide were grafted from bromoisobutyrate initiator attached to a 15 nm thick amino-rich adhesion layer deposited on diverse substrates by RF magnetron sputtering of Nylon 6,6.
Well-controlled polymerization kinetics made it possible to control the thickness of the brushes at a nanometer scale. Zero fouling from single protein solutions and a reduction of more than 90% in the fouling from blood plasma observed oh the uncoated surfaces was achieved.
The feasibility of functionalization with bioactive compounds was tested by covalent attachment of streptavidin onto poly(oligoethylene glycol methacrylate) brush and subsequent immobilization of model antibodies and "oligonudecitides.