The grafting of a thin layer of poly(sodium styrene sulfonate) onto poly(ε-caprolactone) surface can enhance fibroblast behavior.

Poly(sodium styrene sulfonate) (pNaSS) was grafted onto poly(ε-caprolatone) (PCL) surfaces via ozonation and graft polymerization. The effect of ozonation and polymerization time, as well as the Mohr's salt concentration in the grafting solution, on the degree of grafting was investigated. The degree of grafting was determined through toluidine blue staining. The surface chemical change was characterized by attenuated total reflection Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The result demonstrated that the grafting did not induce any degradation of PCL, and that pNaSS was grafted onto PCL as a thin and covalently stable layer. Furthermore, the modified PCL surface reveals a significant increase in the metabolic activity of fibroblastic cells, as well as a better cell spreading with higher adhesion strength. Consequently, bioactivity of PCL is greatly enhanced by immobilizing a thin layer of pNaSS onto its surface. The grafting of pNaSS is a promising approach to increase the bioactivity of PCL-based materials used in tissue engineering applications, such as ligament reconstruction.