Mixed polymer brushes for controlled protein adsorption: state of the art and future prospective

Abstract

Mixed polymer brushes (MPBs) consist of a combination of two or more disparate polymers with one end tethered to an interface by covalent bond and the other end stretched into the surroundings. Owing to the morphologies of the phase separation of these MPBs, they have been widely studied as “responsive polymers” as they belong to the category of polymer brushes having the ability to undergo chemical and conformational changes in response to external stimuli. The resulting assembly presents an exceptional opportunity to precisely control the adsorption and desorption of protein by regulating the surrounding environment, brush thickness, density, chemistry, and architecture. This precise control over adsorption and desorption of protein makes responsive polymers very useful in many applications including drug delivery, wound repairing scaffolds, antifouling surfaces, and many other biomedical and biotechnological fields. In this review, the intention is to describe the state of the art of MPBs, different synthetic techniques, morphologies, interaction with protein molecules, and responsiveness over surrounding environment. Finally, the novel applications of MPBs and their current limitations with possible solutions for upcoming studies are discussed briefly.