Microbial contamination on medical device material surfaces causes serious problems such as device-related infections. Here we report a new strategy to produce rechargeable antimicrobial surfaces to address the issue. Methacrylic acid (MAA) was grafted onto the surfaces of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) and polyurethane (PU), two widely used biomaterials with excellent biological and mechanical properties. Chitosan was covalently bonded onto the MAA-grafted surfaces. The new chitosan-containing surfaces strongly bind and then slow release anionic antibiotics (e.g. rifampin) for weeks to months to kill microbes. The released drug can be recharged to further extend antimicrobial duration.  Also, the new surfaces demonstrated good biocompatibility against mammal cells, pointing to great potentials for a wide range of biomedical applications.

Chitosan-immobilized polymer surfaces for rechargeable antimicrobial drug binding and releasing

243rd National Meeting (2012)

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