Biomimetic Principles to Develop Blood Compatible Surfaces

Abstract

Functionalized biomaterial surface patterns capable of resisting nonspecific adsorption while retaining their bioactivity are crucial in the advancement of biomedical technologies, but currently available biomaterials intended for use in whole blood frequently suffer from nonspecific adsorption of proteins and cells, leading to a loss of activity over time. In this review, we address two concepts for the design and modification of blood compatible biomaterial surfaces, zwitterionic modification and surface functionalization with glycans - both of which are inspired by the membrane structure of mammalian cells - and discuss their potential for biomedical applications.

Ultrathin and Robust Hydrogel Coatings on Cardiovascular Medical Devices to Mitigate Thromboembolic and Infectious Complications

“…It is conceivable that the hydrated, lubricious surface of the coated tubing decreased the adhesion and/or activation of either platelets or coagulation factors, as suggested by previous publications. [9,10,56,44] Additional work is required to fully understand the mechanisms behind the beneficial effects mediated by these hydrogel coatings, and to tailor the hydrogel chemistry and fabrication methods to further improve their performance.…”

“…), including the care for critically ill patients in the ICU. [ 1–10 ] The US market for these medical devices in 2016 was ≈$9.0 billion with an expected growth rate of 4.7% due to the higher incidence of chronic diseases and an overall aging, frailer population. [ 11,12 ] Given their widespread use, serious complications such as infections (5–15% rate) [ 4,8,13 ] and thrombosis (10–20% rate) [ 8,14 ] are always of concern to clinicians, as they can lead to life‐threatening complications such as sepsis, pulmonary embolism and deep‐vein thrombosis.…”

“…These approaches rely on attaching bioinert polymers or bioactive molecules such as corn trypsin inhibitor, heparin or thrombomodulin, to the device surface. [6,10,[29][30][31][32] Despite promising preclinical data, the clinical trial performance has been mixedonly select heparin-coating technologies are able to show clinical benefits. [3,5,6,30] There are very few technologies that aim to address both thrombosis and infections.…”

Materials, Surfaces, and Systems for Extracorporeal Therapies and Beyond

“…Blood compatibility is not only influenced by the nature of the biomaterials used in extracorporeal devices, but may also be impacted by anticoagulation, as shown in the contribution by Strobl et al in this issue (21), which addresses the impact of regional citrate anticoagulation on inflammatory parameters. On the biomaterial level, coatings of surfaces with bioinspired patterns have been employed to improve the blood compatibility of biomaterial surfaces, such as adsorbent polymers, as shown in the contribution by Semak et al (22). Different strategies have been described in this publication to improve blood compatibility in reducing adsorption of proteins by decrease of interfacial energy and steric repulsion using synthetic, hydrophilic polymers (23, 24), but also through application of glycans in a biomimetic manner (25).…”

Desialylation of platelet surface glycans enhances platelet adhesion to adsorbent polymers for lipoprotein apheresis

“… 10 Both systems efficiently deplete apolipoprotein B (apoB) containing lipoproteins by electrostatic interactions between positively charged apoB moieties and negatively charged polyacrylate or dextran sulfate ligands on the adsorbent surface. This direct contact of whole blood with the adsorbent demands a high degree of blood compatibility to minimize platelet activation and adhesion 14 – 16 and to avoid triggering of coagulation. 17 , 18 Thrombocytopenia has been occasionally reported even with clinically well-established hemoadsorption systems, requiring discontinuation of the treatment.…”