(11g) Zwitterionic Conjugated Polyelectrolytes As Next-Generation Biomaterials

Conjugated polymers have attracted significant interests for diagnosis, imaging and therapy and they have been used as core components to improve communications between bioelectronic devices and biological systems by delivering/detecting lower electrical signals. However, biomacromolecules, such as proteins and lipids, tend to adsorb on hydrophobic or charged conjugated polymers that are originally designed for non-biological and non-aqueous systems. Nonspecific adsorption of biomacromolecules on bioelectronic devices reduces their sensitivity and performance, and triggers foreign body response that eventually leads to the failure of embedded devices. To address key challenges of conjugated polymers in biomedical applications, we designed and developed an integrated zwitterionic conjugated polymer-based biomaterial platform. This biomaterial platform consists of conjugated polymer backbones and multifunctional zwitterionic side chains. Zwitterionic materials gain electrical conductivity and interesting optical properties through conjugated polymer backbones, and non-biocompatible conjugated polymers obtain excellent antifouling properties, enhanced electrical conductivity, functional groups of bioconjugation and response to environmental stimuli via multifunctional zwitterionic side chains. This platform can potentially be adapted to a wide range of applications (e.g. bioelectronics, tissue engineering and biofuel cell), which require high performance conducting materials with excellent biocompatibility at biointerfaces.