Poly(N-vinylpyrrolidone)-modified poly(dimethylsiloxane) elastomers as anti-biofouling materials

A new method for the modification of poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) elastomer surfaces with hydrophilic poly(N-vinylpyrrolidone) (PVP) has been developed. PVP chains were grafted from the PDMS surface by surface-initiated atom transfer radical polymerization (SI-ATRP). The resulting surfaces were characterized by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), attenuated total reflectance Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (ATR-FTIR), atomic force microscopy (AFM) and water contact angle measurements. It was shown that the modified surfaces were strongly hydrophilic, indicating that the PVP grafts dominate the surface and define its properties. The anti-fouling properties of the grafted surfaces were demonstrated in protein adsorption and cell adhesion experiments. Both protein adsorption and cell adhesion were inhibited significantly on the PVP-modified PDMS surfaces compared to unmodified controls. It is concluded that modification by SI-ATRP grafting of PVP is an effective method for the preparation of anti-biofouling PDMS materials.