Cold atmospheric pressure plasma: simple and efficient strategy for preparation of poly(2-oxazoline)-based coatings designed for biomedical applications

Poly(2-oxazolines) (POx) are an attractive material of choice for biocompatible and bioactive coatings in medical applications. To prepare POx coatings, the plasma polymerization represents a fast and facile approach that is surface-independent. However, unfavorable factors of this method such as using the low-pressure regimes and noble gases, or poor control over the resulting surface chemistry limit its utilization. Here, we propose to overcome these drawbacks by using well-defined POx-based copolymers prepared by living cationic polymerization as a starting material. Chemically inert polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) is selected as a substrate due to its beneficial features for medical applications. The deposited POx layer is additionally post-treated by non-equilibrium plasma generated at atmospheric pressure. For this purpose, diffuse coplanar surface barrier discharge (DCSBD) is used as a source of “cold” homogeneous plasma, as it is operating at atmospheric pressure even in ambient air. Prepared POx coatings possess hydrophilic nature with an achieved water contact angle of 60°, which is noticeably lower in comparison to the initial value of 106° for raw PTFE. Moreover, the increased fibroblasts adhesion in comparison to raw PTFE is achieved, and the physical and biological properties of the POx-modified surfaces remain stable for 30 days.