Enhanced cytocompatibility and reduced genotoxicity of polydimethylsiloxane modified by plasma immersion ion implantation

Abstract

Polydimethylsiloxane(PDMS) is a common industrial polymer with advantages such as ease of fabrication, tunable hardness, and other desirable properties, but the basic (-OSi(CH3)2-)n structure in PDMS is inherently hydrophobic thereby hampering application to biomedical engineering. In this study, plasma immersion ion implantation (PIII) is conducted on PDMS to improve the biological properties. PIII forms wrinkled “herringbone” patterns and abundant O-containing functional groups on PDMS to alter the surface hydrophilicity. The biocompatibility of the modified PDMS is assessed with Chinese hamster ovarian cells and compared to that of the untreated PDMS. Our results reveal that the PDMS samples after undergoing PIII have better cytocompatibility and lower genotoxicity. PIII which is a non-line-of-sight technique extends the application of PDMS to the biomedical field.