PEDOT-NHS As a Versatile Conjugated Polyelectrolyte for Bioelectronics

Organic bioelectronics has recently offered various healthcare technologies
such as neural interfacing electrodes, biochemical sensors, and drug delivery
devices, with exciting developments on the horizon. Applications in tissue
regeneration, for example, allow for the electroactive nature of organic
bioelectronic materials to affect cell adhesion, signaling, and fate. Such
applications require increased biocompatibility and biofunctionalization,
which are limited by the organic semiconductors currently in use. We
demonstrate a novel derivative of an organic semiconductor poly(3,4-
ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) that can covalently link to biomaterials
and augment otherwise non-conductive materials with enhanced
electroactivity. This is accomplished by synthetically modifying PEDOT with
N-hydroxysuccinimide (NHS) activated acid groups that target the amine-rich
structure of many biomaterials. PEDOT-NHS was characterized
demonstrating similar conductivity and electrochemical behavior to the
parent polymer without the NHS-incorporated structural units, suggesting
that functionalization can be achieved without significantly compromising
the electroactivity of the material. PEDOT-NHS and functionalized
biomaterials were assessed for biocompatibility, hemocompatibility, and
potential for regenerative engineering. The results of this study demonstrate
a novel conducting polymer that can augment biomaterials with enhanced
electroactivity that may both improve regenerative outcomes and serve as a
tool to investigate the mechanistic benefits associated with electrical
stimulation of tissue. The outlined approach has potential beyond the
functionalization of synthetic biomaterials, to natural decellularized tissue for
applications in nerve regeneration and bone growth.