Lubricin: a versatile, biological anti-adhesive with properties comparable to polyethylene glycol

George W Greene; Lisandra L Martin; Rico F Tabor; Agnes Michalczyk; Leigh M Ackland; Roger Horn

doi:10.1016/j.biomaterials.2015.02.086

Lubricin: a versatile, biological anti-adhesive with properties comparable to polyethylene glycol

Biomaterials. 2015 Jun:53:127-36. doi: 10.1016/j.biomaterials.2015.02.086. Epub 2015 Mar 12.

Authors

George W Greene¹, Lisandra L Martin², Rico F Tabor², Agnes Michalczyk³, Leigh M Ackland³, Roger Horn⁴

Affiliations

¹ Institute of Frontier Materials, Deakin University, 221 Burwood Highway, Burwood, 3125, Australia. Electronic address: wren.greene@deakin.edu.au.
² School of Chemistry, Monash University, Clayton, 3800, Australia.
³ School of Life and Environmental Science, Deakin University, 221 Burwood Highway, Burwood, 3125, Australia.
⁴ Institute of Frontier Materials, Deakin University, 221 Burwood Highway, Burwood, 3125, Australia.

PMID: 25890713
DOI: 10.1016/j.biomaterials.2015.02.086

Abstract

Lubricin is a glycoprotein found in articular joints which has been recognized as being an important biological boundary lubricant molecule. Besides providing lubrication, we demonstrate, using a quartz crystal microbalance, that lubricin also exhibits anti-adhesive properties and is highly effective at preventing the non-specific adsorption of representative globular proteins and constituents of blood plasma. This impressive anti-adhesive property, combined with lubricin's ability to readily self-assemble to form dense, highly stable telechelic polymer brush layers on virtually any substrates, and its innate biocompatibility, makes it an attractive candidate for anti-adhesive and anti-fouling coatings. We show that coatings of lubricin protein are as effective as, or better than, self-assembled monolayers of polyethylene glycol over a wide range of pH and that this provides a simple, versatile, highly stable, and highly effective method of controlling unwanted adhesion to surfaces.

Keywords: Anti-adhesion; Biofouling; Lubricin; Non-specific binding; Quartz crystal microbalance; Surface treatment.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Glycoproteins / chemistry*
Polyethylene Glycols / chemistry*
Quartz Crystal Microbalance Techniques

Substances

Glycoproteins
lubricin
Polyethylene Glycols