The control of marine biofouling on xerogel surfaces with nanometer-scale topography.

Mixtures of n-octadecyltrimethoxysilane (C18, 1-5 mole-%), n-octyltriethoxysilane (C8) and tetraethoxysilane (TEOS) gave xerogel surfaces of varying topography. The 1:49:50 C18/C8/TEOS xerogel formed 100-400-nm-wide, 2-7-nm deep pores by AFM while coatings with ≥3% C18 were free of such features. Segregation of the coating into alkane-rich and alkane-deficient regions in the 1:49:50 C18/C8/TEOS xerogel was observed by IR microscopy. Immersion in ASW for 48 h gave no statistical difference in surface energy for the 1:49:50 C18/C8/TEOS xerogel and a significant increase for the 50:50 C8/TEOS xerogel. Settlement of barnacle cyprids and removal of juvenile barnacles, settlement of zoospores of the alga Ulva linza, and strength of attachment of 7-day sporelings were compared amongst the xerogel formulations. Settlement of barnacle cyprids was significantly lower in comparison to glass and polystyrene standards. The 1:49:50 and 3:47:50 C18/C8/TEOS xerogels were comparable to PDMSE with respect to removal of juvenile barnacles and sporeling biomass, respectively.

Effect of radio frequency glow-discharge treatment of titanium on human gingival fibroblasts as a function of distance.

The mechanical stability and long-term success of an implant depends on the early healing phase and osseointegration of the bone around it. In addition, a healthy gingival tissue around the implant acts as a barrier that prevents bacteria and pathological byproducts from reaching the implant site. This study investigated the in-vitro attachment and spreading of human gingival fibroblasts (HGF) on bacterial grade polystyrene (PS) at different distances from radio-frequency glow-discharge (RFGD)-treated commercially pure titanium (cpTi) specimens. Controls included sterile cpTi specimens without RFGD treatment. A second set of experiments utilized media transferred to new bacterial grade polystyrene dishes (no cpTi) after the medium was conditioned by exposure to cpTi, either with or without RFGD treatment, for 24 hr. Surface characterization of the dishes was conducted through contact angle measurements and infrared spectroscopy. Cell numbers and surface areas were determined from Image J analysis of multiple microscopic images of fixed, stained cells. The results showed significantly greater numbers and surface areas on bacterial grade PS dishes at distances up to 15 mm from the RFGD-treated cpTi groups than for the controls. Moreover, a significant effect of the conditioned medium from RFGD-treated cpTi versus control cultures was shown on the numbers of fibroblasts attached to bacterial grade polystyrene dishes after 24 hr (p < 0.005) and 48 hr (p = 0.002) incubation. Surface areas of cells exposed to conditioned medium were not significantly different (p ≥ 0.05). Surface characterization of the PS dishes showed a higher value of the critical surface tensions of the treated group when compared to the control group.

Barnacle settlement and the adhesion of protein and diatom microfouling to xerogel films with varying surface energy and water wettability.

Previous work has shown that organosilica-based xerogels have the potential to control biofouling. In this study, modifications of chemistry were investigated with respect to their resistance to marine slimes and to settlement of barnacle cyprids. Adhesion force measurements of bovine serum albumin (BSA)-coated atomic force microscopy (AFM) tips to xerogel surfaces prepared from aminopropylsilyl-, fluorocarbonsilyl-, and hydrocarbonsilyl-containing precursors, indicated that adhesion was significantly less on the xerogel surfaces in comparison to a poly(dimethylsiloxane) elastomer (PDMSE) standard. The strength of adhesion of BSA on the xerogels was highest on surfaces with the highest and the lowest critical surface tensions, gamma(C) and surface energies, gamma(S), and duplicated the 'Baier curve'. The attachment to and removal of cells of the diatom Navicula perminuta from a similar series of xerogel surfaces were examined. Initial attachment of cells was comparable on all of the xerogel surfaces, but the percentage removal of attached cells by hydrodynamic shear stress increased with gamma(C) and increased wettability as measured by the static water contact angle, theta(Ws), of the xerogel surfaces. The percentage removal of cells of Navicula was linearly correlated with both properties (R(2) = 0.74 for percentage removal as a function of theta(Ws) and R(2) = 0.69 for percentage removal as a function of gamma(C)). Several of the aminopropylsilyl-containing xerogels showed significantly greater removal of Navicula compared to a PDMSE standard. Cypris larvae of the barnacle B. amphitrite showed preferred settlement on hydrophilic/higher energy surfaces. Settlement was linearly correlated with theta(Ws) (R(2) = 0.84) and gamma(C) (R(2) = 0.84). Hydrophilic xerogels should prove useful as coatings for boats in regions where fouling is dominated by microfouling (protein and diatom slimes).

The role of surface energy and water wettability in aminoalkyl/fluorocarbon/hydrocarbon-modified xerogel surfaces in the control of marine biofouling.

Xerogel films with uniform surface topogrophy, as determined by scanning electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy (AFM), and time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry, were prepared from aminopropylsilyl-, fluorocarbonsilyl-, and hydrocarbonsilyl- containing precursors. Young's modulus was determined from AFM indentation measurements. The xerogel coatings gave reduced settlement of zoospores of the marine fouling alga Ulva compared to a poly(dimethylsiloxane) elastomer (PDMSE) standard. Increased settlement correlated with decreased water wettability as measured by the static water contact angle, theta(Ws), or with decreased polar contribution (gamma(P)) to the surface free energy (gamma(S)) as measured by comprehensive contact angle analysis. The strength of attachment of 7-day sporelings (young plants) of Ulva on several of the xerogels was similar to that on PDMSE although no overall correlation was observed with either theta(Ws) or gamma(S). For sporelings attached to the fluorocarbon/hydrocarbon-modified xerogels, the strength of attachment increased with increased water wettability. The aminopropyl-modified xerogels did not follow this trend.

Bioengineering and Imaging Research Opportunities Workshop V: a summary on Imaging and Characterizing Structure and Function in Native and Engineered Tissues.

The Fifth Bioengineering and Imaging Research Opportunities Workshop (BIROW V) was held on January 18-19, 2008. As with previous BIROW meetings, the purpose of BIROW V was to identify and characterize research and engineering opportunities in biomedical engineering and imaging. The topic of this BIROW meeting was Imaging and Characterizing Structure and Function in Native and Engineered Tissues. Under this topic, four areas were explored in depth:1) Heterogeneous single-cell measurements and their integration into tissue and organism models;2) Functional, molecular, and structural imaging of engineered tissue in vitro and in vivo;3) New technologies for characterizing cells and tissues in situ;4) Imaging for targeted cell, gene, and drug delivery.

Differential tissue-on-tissue lubrication by ophthalmic formulations.

Tissue-on-tissue friction testing was used to determine how instillation of hydrophilic polymer-containing formulations between the "blinking" tissues would compare with lubrication by saline, alone, or an oil-emulsion preparation. Best results were obtained for a formulation that contained active demulcents polyethylene glycol (PEG 400) and propylene glycol (PG), as well as a gellable polymer hydroxypropyl guar (HP-Guar) in a borate-buffered solution, in comparison with hydroxypropylcellulose-containing and carboxymethylcellulose-containing formulations. Superior performance of all the formulations was found for lubricating tissue-on-tissue couples, compared with metal-oxide-to-metal oxide interfaces, or metal oxide-to-tissue interfaces. A reciprocating pin-on-disc type friction/wear test device articulated the intimal faces of preserved human umbilical cord vein segments under increasing loads during simulated continuous "eye-blinking" with addition of increasing weights up to 60 g/cm2, simulating maximal eyelid force on the orbital globe. The tissue-on-tissue couples moved from liquid phase lubrication to boundary lubrication. After residual formulations were rinsed away with saline, persistence of low friction at the highest loads was indicative of formulation substantivity. Human umbilical cord vein segments were utilized in saline-wetted tissue-on-tissue couples that showed variable starting coefficients of friction in the range 0.2-0.4, producing moderate tearing and disruption of the interfacial layers above the medial collagen zone. The best-performing formulations instilled to the tissues pre-wetted with saline apparently reacted separately with each tissue face to produce a lower final and persistent coefficient of friction of about 0.05. Scanning electron microscopy and light microscopy of these guar-modified tissue specimens showed only a few superficial tissue disruptions, and some interphase swelling consistent with polymer uptake. The frictional values for lubricated couples having non-tissue members were considerably higher than the coefficients of friction measured for the similarly lubricated tissue-on-tissue couples, emphasizing the requirement that appropriate simulations are critical to obtaining clinically predictive data.

Effect of cleaning and sterilization on titanium implant surface properties and cellular response.

Titanium (Ti) has been widely used as an implant material due to the excellent biocompatibility and corrosion resistance of its oxide surface. Biomaterials must be sterile before implantation, but the effects of sterilization on their surface properties have been less well studied. The effects of cleaning and sterilization on surface characteristics were bio-determined using contaminated and pure Ti substrata first manufactured to present two different surface structures: pretreated titanium (PT, Ra=0.4 µm) (i.e. surfaces that were not modified by sandblasting and/or acid etching); (SLA, Ra=3.4 µm). Previously cultured cells and associated extracellular matrix were removed from all bio-contaminated specimens by cleaning in a sonicator bath with a sequential acetone-isopropanol-ethanol-distilled water protocol. Cleaned specimens were sterilized with autoclave, gamma irradiation, oxygen plasma, or ultraviolet light. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), contact angle measurements, profilometry, and scanning electron microscopy were used to examine surface chemical components, hydrophilicity, roughness, and morphology, respectively. Small organic molecules present on contaminated Ti surfaces were removed with cleaning. XPS analysis confirmed that surface chemistry was altered by both cleaning and sterilization. Cleaning and sterilization affected hydrophobicity and roughness. These modified surface properties affected osteogenic differentiation of human MG63 osteoblast-like cells. Specifically, autoclaved SLA surfaces lost the characteristic increase in osteoblast differentiation seen on starting SLA surfaces, which was correlated with altered surface wettability and roughness. These data indicated that recleaned and resterilized Ti implant surfaces cannot be considered the same as the first surfaces in terms of surface properties and cell responses. Therefore, the reuse of Ti implants after resterilization may not result in the same tissue responses as found with never-before-implanted specimens.

Bioengineering and imaging research opportunities workshop V: a summary.

The fifth Bioengineering and Imaging Research Opportunities Workshop (BIROW V) was held on January 18-19, 2008. As with previous BIROW meetings, the purpose of BIROW V was to identify and characterize research and engineering opportunities in biomedical engineering and imaging. The topic of this BIROW meeting was Imaging and Characterizing Structure and Function in Native and Engineered Tissues. Under this topic, four areas were explored in depth: (1) Heterogeneous single-cell measurements and their integration into tissue and organism models; (2) Functional, molecular, and structural imaging of engineered tissue in vitro and in vivo; (3) New technologies for characterizing cells and tissues in situ; (4) Imaging for targeted cell, gene, and drug delivery.

Interspecific variation in patterns of adhesion of marine fouling to silicone surfaces.

The adhesion of six fouling organisms: the barnacle Balanus eburneus, the gastropod mollusc Crepidulafornicata, the bivalve molluscs Crassostrea virginica and Ostrea/Dendrostrea spp., and the serpulid tubeworms Hydroides dianthus and H. elegans, to 12 silicone fouling-release surfaces was examined. Removal stress (adhesion strength) varied among the fouling species and among the surfaces. Principal component analysis of the removal stress data revealed that the fouling species fell into two distinct groups, one comprising the bivalve molluscs and tubeworms, and the other the barnacle and the gastropod mollusc. None of the silicone materials generated a minimum in removal stress for all the organisms tested, although several surfaces produced low adhesion strengths for both groups of species. These results suggest that fouling-release materials do not rank (in terms of adhesion strength) identically for all fouling organisms, and thus development of a globally-effective hull coating will continue to require testing against a diversity of encrusting species.

Hybrid xerogel films as novel coatings for antifouling and fouling release.

Hybrid sol-gel-derived xerogel films prepared from 45/55 (mol ratio) n-propyltrimethoxysilane (C3-TMOS)/tetramethylorthosilane (TMOS), 2/98 (mol ratio) bis[3-(trimethoxysilyl)propyl]-ethylenediamine (enTMOS)/tetraethylorthosilane (TEOS), 50/50 (mol ratio) n-octyltriethoxysilane (C8-TEOS)/TMOS, and 50/50 (mol ratio) 3,3,3-trifluoropropyltrimethoxysilane (TFP-TMOS)/TMOS were found to inhibit settlement of zoospores of the marine fouling alga Ulva (syn. Enteromorpha) relative to settlement on acid-washed glass and give greater release of settled zoospores relative to glass upon exposure to pressure from a water jet. The more hydrophobic 50/50 C8-TEOS/TMOS xerogel films had the lowest critical surface tension by comprehensive contact angle analysis and gave significantly greater release of 8-day Ulva sporeling biomass after exposure to turbulent flow generated by a flow channel than the other xerogel surfaces or glass. The 50/50 C8-TEOS/TMOS xerogel was also a fouling release surface for juveniles of the tropical barnacle Balanus amphitrite. X-ray photon electron data indicated that the alkylsilyl residues of the C3-TMOS-, C8-TEOS-, and TFP-TMOS-containing xerogels were located on the surface of the xerogel films (in a vacuum), which contributes to the film hydrophobicity. Similarly, the amine-containing silyl residues of the enTMOS/TEOS films were located at the surface of the xerogel films, which contributes to the more hydrophilic character and increased critical surface tension of these films.