Design of Biofunctional Platforms: Differently Processed Biomaterials with Polydopamine Coating

The chemical modification of biomaterials (i.e., polyesters, polysaccharides) can offer the opportunity to develop multifunctional platforms characterized by a combination of suitable properties and useful for biomedical applications. Polydopamine (PDA) is a mussel-inspired polymer with excellent properties such as adsorption ability, high hydrophilicity, electrical properties and numerous functional groups for immobilizing biomolecules. Due to high adhesion properties to almost all kinds of substrates PDA it has been largely used as coating for surface modification of material to modulate cellular responses, including cell spreading, migration, proliferation, and differentiation. In order to develop bio-functionalized systems, PDA was proposed as coating of biomaterials differently processed in form of sub-micrometric fibres, microgels and foams. Starting by a dopamine precursor solution, PDA coating deposition on substrates was performed by exploring different methodologies. In particular, poly-e-caprolactone (PCL) electrospun fibres coated with PDA by electrofluidodynamic process was reported as possible bio-conductive interfaces. Preliminary results, in terms of synthesis conditions, structural characterization, and in vitro cell studies suggested that polymerization/oxidation reactions can be properly optimized to guide PDA self-assembly in order to control surface properties, and ultimately, influence cell materials interactions.