a b s t r a c tBiomaterials surface design is critical for the control of materials and biological system interactions. Being regulated by a layer of molecular dimensions, bioadhesion could be effectively tailored by polymer surface grafting. Basically, this surface modification can be controlled by radical polymerization, which is a useful tool for this purpose. The aim of this review is to provide a comprehensive overview of the role of surface characteristics on bioadhesion properties. We place a particular focus on biomaterials functionalized with a brush surface, on presentation of grafting techniques for "grafting to" and "grafting from" strategies and on brush characterization methods. Since atom transfer radical polymerization (ATRP) and reversible addition-fragmentation chain transfer (RAFT) polymerization are the most frequently used grafting techniques, their main characteristics will be explained. Through the example of poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAM) which is a widely used polymer allowing tuneable cell adhesion, smart surfaces involving PNIPAM will be presented with their main modern applications.

This is an author's version published in: http://oatao.univ-toulouse.fr/24521 Ahstract Polyelectrolyte complex (PEC) films were pre pared from chitosan (CHI) and alginate (ALG) which are polymers of opposite charge. Two homogenization tech niques and two ratios of ALG CHI blends were compared: mechanical agitation under vacuum (ALG CHI ST) or agitation by high twbulence (ALG CHI UT) and 50'50 or 63/37 ratios. Surface and structure of PEC films are affected by the homogenization technique while the swel ling percentage is only affected by polymer ratio. The homogenization ratio does not seem to infl uence in vitro cell proliferation. Results show that the UT homogeniza tion technique with a 63/37 ratio, which gives films with a smooth, homogeneous surface and a higher rate of enzy matic resistance, is more efficient for cell proliferation and viability. These first results confirm the potential use of ALG CH I films for surgery application.