Anti-Fouling Surfaces for Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation by Surface Grafting of Hydrophilic Sulfoxide Polymers

Non-thrombogenic surfaces for extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) devices are important to increase their duration of usage and to enable long-term life support. However, the contact of blood with the hydrophobic synthetic ECMO membrane materials such as poly(4-methyl-1-pentene) (PMP) can activate the coagulation cascade, causing thrombosis and a series of consequent complications during ECMO operation. Targeting this problem, we proposed to graft highly hydrophilic sulfoxide polymer brushes onto the PMP surfaces via gamma ray irradiation-initiated polymerization to improve the hemocompatibility of the membrane. Through this chemical modification, the surface of the PMP film is altered from hydrophobic to hydrophilic. The extent of plasma protein adsorption and platelet adhesion, the prerequisite mediators of the coagulation cascade and thrombus formation, are drastically reduced compared with those of the unmodified PMP film. Therefore, the method provides a facile approach to modify PMP materials with excellent antifouling properties and improved hemocompatibility demanded by the applications in ECMO and other blood-contacting medical devices.