Coating of Poly(ethylene glycol) for Prevention of Biofilm Formation on the Surface of Polyethylene Ventilation Devices

Abstract

To improve the biocompatibility of the polyethylene (PE) ventilation tubes for its applications in otolaryngology, poly(ethylene glycol)-acrylate (PEG-acrylate) was coated for prevention of biofilm formation via proteins adsorption on the PE surface. The PE film was surface-modified in advance with plasma treatment with oxygen and argon gases on the PE surfaces in film and tube types. PEG-acrylates was radical polymerized on the plasma-treated PE samples. The surface-modified samples were analyzed chemically with ATR-FTIR and XPS, and physically with SEM observation and contact angle measurement. While ATR-FTIR, XPS and SEM results showed new chemical peaks and smooth surface morphologies similar to those of the untreated controls, in vitro cultures of fibroblasts and bacteria showed less adhesion in vitro on the film samples than those of the unmodified control. The evaluations of the PE samples in tube type also showed reduction of adhesion of both cells and bacteria in rats on both the plasmatreated and PGgraft-polymerized surfaces compared to those of the untreated PE surfaces, indicating reduction of biofilms. Surface modification with oxygen plasma treatment and graft polymerization of PEG-acrylate on the PE tubes seemed to be an excellent technique for prevention of biofilm in ventilation tubes.