Surface modification of neural probes with conducting polymer poly(hydroxymethylated-3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) and its biocompatibility

A novel conducting polymer, poly(hydroxymethylated-3,4-ethylenedioxy-thiophene) (PEDOT-MeOH), was electrochemically deposited onto the electrodes of micromachined neural probes. Uniformly distributed film was obtained from aqueous solution when doped with polystyrenesulfonate. The surface morphology was rough and had good cellular adhesion. Impedance spectroscopy showed that the magnitude of coated electrode was lower than that of the bare gold over a range of frequencies from 10⁰ to 10⁵ Hz. Since the biocompatibility of the interface between the neural probes and brain tissue plays an important role when the probes are implanted in the central nervous system for long-term application, biomolecules were incorporated into the coating. Nonapeptide CDPGYIGSR was codeposited as the counterion in the conducting films. The surface morphology of the coating was fuzzy, providing many bioactive sites for interaction with neural cells. The magnitude of impedance was as low as 53 kω at the biologically relevant frequency of 1 kHz. An in vitro experiment demonstrated that the neuroblastoma cells grew preferentially on the PEDOT-MeOH/CDPGYIGSR-coated electrode sites and spread beyond the electrode area.     

烷氧磺酸盐功能化的聚乙撑二氧噻吩水凝胶

通过氧化偶联聚合方法成功地制备出一种基于烷氧磺酸盐功能化的聚乙撑二氧噻吩水凝胶, 揭示了零维单体胶束向二维纳米片层及三维水凝胶的转变过程, 发现通过改变反应温度或初始单体浓度, 可以诱导水凝胶网络结构单元的维度变化, 即由零维纳米粒子向二维纳米片层进行转化. 提出了一种导电高分子水凝胶的合成方法, 即采用一种氧化剂与一种多价金属盐的混合物作为引发剂, 其中前者用于诱导单体聚合, 后者则充当离子交联试剂, 并发现可以通过引入不同金属离子来改变凝胶的形貌. 此外, 导电高分子水凝胶具有良好的电化学电容, 并具有选择性吸附与可控脱附某些染料分子的特性.     

Efficient post-polymerization functionalization of conducting poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) via ‘click’-reaction

The possibility to functionalize polymers after a successful polymerization process is often an important challenge in macromolecular science. Herein, modified electrodes based on azide-containing potentiodynamically electropolymerized PEDOT derivatives are reported. This reactive coatings are subsequently modified under mild heterogeneous conditions by copper-catalyzed Huisgen 1,3-dipolar cycloaddition with terminal alkynes, the so-called ‘click’-reaction. A series of terminal alkynes have been successfully used for the facile immobilization of neutral, electron-accepting and electron-donating units to the conducting PEDOT with high conversion efficiencies showing the broad scope of the strategy. The route is devoid of the limitations generated by the various steric and electronic impacts of the substituents when attached to the monomer before polymerization.     

Conducting poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene)-montmorillonite exfoliated nanocomposites

Exfoliated nanocomposites formed by poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) and different concentrations of non-modified montmorillonite (bentonite), which range from 1% to 10% w/w, have been prepared by anodic electropolymerization in aqueous solution. Analyses of the electrochemical and electrical properties reveal that the electroactivity of the nanocomposites is higher than that of the individual homopolymer, while the electrical conductivity of the two systems is practically identical. On the other hand, the exfoliated distribution of the clay in the polymeric matrix and the morphology of the prepared materials have been characterized using transmission electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction and atomic force microscopy. The overall of the results represents a significant improvement with respect to other nanocomposites constituted by conducting polymers and clays, including those involving poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene), and evidences the reliability of the preparation procedure employed in this work.     

Cellular adhesion and proliferation on poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene): Benefits in the electroactivity of the conducting polymer

Cell adhesion and proliferation in poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene), an electroactive polythiophene derivative generated by anodic polymerization, has been investigated. Results show that epithelial cells Hep-2 present significant activity on the surface of poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) electrodeposited on stainless steel electrodes, no sign of cytotoxicity being detected for this conducting polymer. Indeed, seeded and cultured cells bound better to poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) than to uncoated stainless steel, the latter substrate being used as a control. Furthermore, the electrochemical characteristics of poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) covered with cells was determined in different biological media using cyclic voltammetry experiments. Results reveal a significant increase in the electroactivity of this material when it is covered with a cellular monolayer. The overall of the results evidences not only the biocompatibility of poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) with Hep-2 cells but also their electrocompatibility.     

Synthesis and characterization of a new soluble conducting polymer and its electrochromic device

A mixture of isomers 2,5-di(4-methyl-thiophen-2-yl)-1-(4-nitrophenyl)-1H-pyrrole, 2-(4-methyl-thiophen-2-yl)-5-(3-methyl-thiophen-2-yl)-1-(4-nitrophenyl)-1H-pyrrole and 2,5-di(3-methyl-thiophen-2-yl)-1-(4-nitrophenyl)-1H-pyrrole (Me-SNS(NO₂)) were synthesized. Resulting monomers were polymerized chemically, producing soluble polymers in common organic solvents. The average molecular weight has been determined by gel permeation chromatography (GPC) as Mn=5.6×10³ for the chemically synthesized polymer. The monomers were also electrochemically polymerized in the presence of LiClO₄, NaClO₄ (1:1) as the supporting electrolyte in acetonitrile solvent. Resulting polymers were characterized via CV, FTIR, NMR, SEM and UV–Vis spectroscopy. Spectroelectrochemistry analysis of polymer revealed Π–Π^* transition below 300 nm, with an electronic band gap of 2.18 ev. Switching ability of the polymer was evaluated by kinetic study measuring percent transmittance (%T) at the maximum contrast point, indicating that poly(Me-SNS(NO₂)) is a suitable material for electrochromic devices.     

Graphene Oxide Doped Poly（hydroxymethylated-3,4- ethylenedioxythiophene）： Enhanced Sensitivity for Electrochemical Determination of Rutin and Ascorbic Acid

A novel graphene oxide doped poly(hydroxymethylated-3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene)(PEDOT-MeOH/GO) composite film was synthesized and utilized as an efficient electrode material for simultaneous detection of rutin and ascorbic acid(AA). PEDOT-MeOH/GO films were synthesized on glassy carbon electrode(GCE) by a facile one-step electrochemical approach and were characterized by scanning electron microscopy, UV-Vis spectroscopy, FTIR spectra and electrochemical methods. Then the PEDOT-MeOH/GO/GCE was applied successfully in the simultaneous detection of rutin and AA. The results showed that the oxidation peak currents of rutin and AA obtained at the PEDOT-MeOH/GO/GCE were much higher than those at the traditional conducting polymer PEDOT/GO/GCE, PEDOT-MeOH/GCE, PEDOT/GCE and bare GCE. Under optimized conditions, the linear ranges for rutin and AA are 20 nmol/L-10 μmol/L and 8 μmol/L-1 mmol/L, respectively. The detection limit is 6 nmol/L for rutin and 2 μmol/L for AA(S/N = 3), which are lower than those of the reported electrochemical sensors.     

Properties of nanometric and submicrometric multilayered films of poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) and poly(N-methylpyrrole)

Multilayered films formed by 3, 5 and 7 alternated layers of poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) and poly(N-methylpyrrole) have been prepared by chronoamperometry under a constant potential of 1.4 V using a layer-by-layer electrodeposition technique. In order to examine influence of the interface:bulk dimensional ratio, the thickness of the yielded films was reduced from the submicrometric to the nanometric scale by decreasing the polymerization time of each layer from 100 s to 10 s. The electroactivity, electrochemical characteristics and morphologies of the resulting multilayered films have been compared with those obtained for both single-component poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) films prepared using identical experimental conditions and previously reported multilayered films with thickness within the micrometric scale [Estrany F, Aradilla D, Oliver R, Alemán C. Eur Polym J 2007;43:1876].     

Synthesis, characterization and electrochromic properties of conducting copolymers of 2,3-bis-[(3-thienylcarbonyl)oxy]propyl 3-thiophene carboxylate with thiophene and pyrrole

2,3-bis-[(3-thienylcarbonyl)oxy]propyl 3-thiophene carboxylate (TOPT) was synthesized via the reaction of 3-thionylcarboxylic acid with glycerol, and electrochemically polymerized either with thiophene and pyrrole by using tetrabutylammonium tetrafluoroborate (TBAFB) as the supporting electrolyte in acetonitrile (AN). Characterization of the resulting copolymers was performed via cyclic voltammetry, FTIR, thermal gravimetry analysis (TGA), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Electrical conductivities were measured by the four-probe technique. Spectroelectrochemical analysis shows that the copolymer of the monomer with thiophene has an electronic band gap (due to the π-π^∗ transition) of 2.00 eV, with a dark red color in the fully reduced form and a green color in the fully oxidized form. The copolymer exhibited a long-term switching stability up to 1800 double switches.     

Novel flexible chemical gas sensor based on poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) nanotube membrane

Poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) nanotubes (PEDOT NTs) flexible membrane was successfully fabricated by vapor deposition polymerization (VDP) mediated electrospinning for ammonia gas detection. PVA nanofibers (NFs) were electrospun as a core part and polyvinyl alcohol (PVA)/PEDOT coaxial nanocables (NCs) were prepared by VDP method via EDOT monomer adsorption onto the electrospun PVA NFs as templates. To obtain the PEDOT NTs membrane, the PVA NFs were removed from PVA/PEDOT coaxial NCs with distilled water. PVA/PEDOT coaxial NCs and PEDOT NTs had the conductivities of 71 and 61 S cm⁻¹ and were applied as a transducer for ammonia gas detection in the range of 1-100 parts per million (ppm) of NH₃ gas. They exhibited the minimum detectable level of ca. 5 parts per million (ppm) and fast response time (less than 1 s) towards ammonia gas. In a recovery time, the PEDOT NTs membrane sensor was ca. 30 s and shorter compared to that of the membrane sensor based on the PVA/PEDOT NCs (ca. 50 s). In addition, sensor performance of PEDOT NTs membrane was also undertaken as a function of membrane thickness. Thick membrane sensor (30 μm) had the enhanced sensitivity and the sensitivity on the membrane thickness was in the order of 30 μm > 20 μm > 10 μm at 60 ppm of NH₃ gas.     

Electrochemical synthesis and characterization of poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) in ionic liquids with bulky organic anions

The electrochemistry of poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) was studied in two ionic liquids with bulky organic anions, i.e., 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium (BMIM) diethylene glycol monomethyl ether sulfate (MDEGSO₄) and BMIM octyl sulfate (OctSO₄). BMIM-MDEGSO₄ is a liquid, while BMIM-OctSO₄ is in solid form at room temperature. Electrosynthesis of PEDOT in BMIM-MDEGSO₄ with an EDOT concentration of 0.1 M and in BMIM-MDEGSO₄/EDOT 1/1 (w/w) solution resulted in no polymer at all or a very limited amount of polymer on the electrode surface, as determined by cyclic voltammetry in 0.1 M KCl(aq) solution. In contrast, electrosynthesis of PEDOT in BMIM-OctSO₄/EDOT 1/1 (w/w) resulted in a high yield of electroactive material on the electrode surface. Furthermore, electrosynthesis of PEDOT in ionic liquid–water solution (C_{ionic liquid}=1.5 M) containing 0.1 M EDOT was also found to give a relatively high yield of electroactive material on the electrode surface, both for 1.5 M BMIM-MDEGSO₄(aq) and 1.5 M BMIM-OctSO₄(aq). The PEDOT electrodes showed an anionic potentiometric response in 10^–5–10^–1 M KCl(aq) solution, indicating a predominant anion transfer at the polymer–solution interface despite the relatively bulky anions (MDEGSO₄^– or OctSO₄^–) incorporated as counterions in PEDOT during electropolymerization. On the basis of electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, the charge (ion) transport properties of the polymer film were strongly influenced by the water content of the ionic liquid (C_{ionic liquid}=0.05–2.0 M).Dedicated to Zbigniew Galus on the occasion of his 70th birthday     

Electrosynthesis and characterization of poly(hydroxy-methylated-3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) film in aqueous micellar solution and its biosensing application

A new and efficient synthetic route to hydroxymethylated-3,4-ethylenedioxylthiophene（EDOT-MeOH） was developed by a simple four-step sequence,and its global yield was approximately 41.06%.The poly（hydroxymethylated-3, 4-ethylenedioxylthiophene）（PEDOT-MeOH） film was electrosynthesized in aqueous sodium dodecylsulfate micellar solutions and characterized by different methods.The EDOT-MeOH possessed better water solubility,and lower onset oxidation potential than EDOT.The as-obtained PEDOT-MeOH film displayed good reversible redox activity,stability and capacitance properties in a monomer-free electrolyte,especially the good solubility of PEDOT-MeOH film in strong polar organic solvents such as dimethyl sulfoxide and tetrahydrofuran created a potential application in many different fields. Fluorescent spectra indicated that PEDOT-MeOH was a yellow-green-light-emitter with maximum emission at 568 nm.The as-formed PEDOT-MeOH film had good biocompatibility and was used for fabricating the electrochemical vitamin C biosensor.The proposed biosensor showed a linear range of 3×10^-6 mol/L to 1.2×10^-2 mol/L with the detection limit of 1μmol/L,a sensitivity of 95.6μA（mmol/L）^-1 cm^-2,and a current response time less than 10 s and a fairly good stability (The relative standard deviation was 0.43%for 20 successive assays,the proposed biosensor still retained 93.5%of bioactivity after 15 days storage.This result indicated that the prepared PEDOT-MeOH film as immobilization matrix of biologically-active species could be a promising candidate for the design and application of biosensor.     

Simultaneous determination of dopamine and ascorbic acid on poly (3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) modified glassy carbon electrode

Detection of dopamine (DA) in the presence of excess of ascorbic acid (AA) has been demonstrated using a conducting polymer matrix, poly (3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) film in neutral buffer (PBS 7.4) solution. The PEDOT film was deposited on a glassy carbon electrode by electropolymerization of EDOT from acetonitrile solution. Atomic force microscopy studies revealed that the electrodeposited film was found to be approximately 100 nm thick with a roughness factor of 2.6 nm. Voltammetric studies have shown catalytic oxidation of DA and AA on PEDOT modified electrode and can afford a peak potential separation of ∼0.2 V. It is speculated that the cationic PEDOT film interacts with the negatively charged ascorbate anion through favorable electrostatic interaction, which results in pre-concentration at a less anodic value. The positively charged DA tends to interact with the hydrophobic regions of PEDOT film through hydrophobic–hydrophobic interaction thus resulting in favorable adsorption on the polymer matrix. Further enhancement in sensitivity to micro molar level oxidation current for DA/AA oxidation was achieved by square wave voltammetry (SWV) which can detect DA at its low concentration of 1 μM in the presence of 1000 times higher concentration of AA (1 mM). Thus the PEDOT modified electrode exhibited a stable and sensitive response to DA in the presence of AA interference.     

Amperometric sensors based on poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene)-modified electrodes: discrimination of white wines

The voltammetric responses on selected white wines of different vintages and origins have been systematically collected by three different modified electrodes, in order to check their effectiveness in performing blind analysis of similar matrices. The electrode modifiers consist of a conducting polymer, namely poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) and of composite materials of Au and Pt nanoparticles embedded in a PEDOT layer. Wine samples have been tested, without any prior treatments, with differential pulse voltammetry technique. The subsequent chemometric analysis has been carried out both separately on the signals of each sensor, and on the signals of two or even three sensors as a unique set of data, in order to check the possible complementarity of the information brought by the different electrodes. After a preliminary inspection by principal component analysis, classification models have been built and validated by partial least squares-discriminant analysis. The discriminant capability has been evaluated in terms of sensitivity and specificity of classification; in all cases quite good results have been obtained.     

Poly(pyrrole) versus poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene): amperometric cholesterol biosensor matrices

Two conducting polymers, poly(pyrrole) (PPy) and poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) were used as immobilization matrices for cholesterol oxidase (ChOx). The amperometric responses of the enzyme electrodes were measured by monitoring oxidation current of H₂O₂ at +0.7 V in the absence of a mediator. Kinetic parameters, such as K _m and I _max, operational and storage stabilities, effects of pH and temperature were determined for both entrapment supports. K _m values are found as 7.9 and 1.3 mM for PPy and PEDOT enzyme electrodes, respectively; it can be interpreted that ChOx immobilized in PEDOT shows higher affinity towards the substrate.     

Synthesis of a dipyrromethane functionalized monomer and optoelectrochromic properties of its polymer

A dipyrromethane functionalized monomer; 5-(4-tert-butylphenyl)dipyrromethane (BPDP) was synthesized. The structure of the monomer was characterized by nuclear magnetic resonance (¹H NMR and ¹³C NMR) and Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopies. Electrochemical polymerization of BPDP was performed in acetonitrile (AN)/LiClO₄. The resulting conducting polymer was characterized by FTIR spectroscopy and electrical conductivity measurements. Spectroelectrochemical behavior and switching ability of P(BPDP) film were investigated by UV-Vis spectroscopy. P(BPDP) revealed color changes between yellow and blue in the reduced and oxidized states, respectively. In order to investigate electrochromic properties and stability of the P(BPDP) in electrochromic device (ECDs) application, dual type polymer ECD based on P(BPDP) and poly(ethylene dioxythiophene) (PEDOT) were constructed. Spectroelectrochemistry, switching ability and stability of the devices were investigated by UV-Vis spectroscopy and cyclic voltammetry.     

Characterization of poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):tosylate conductive polymer microelectrodes for transmitter detection

In this paper we investigate the physical and electrochemical properties of micropatterned poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):tosylate (PEDOT:tosylate) microelectrodes for neurochemical detection. PEDOT:tosylate is a promising conductive polymer electrode material for chip-based bioanalytical applications such as capillary electrophoresis, high-performance liquid chromatography, and constant potential amperometry at living cells. Band electrodes with widths down to 3 μm were fabricated on polymer substrates using UV lithographic methods. The electrodes are electrochemically stable in a range between -200 mV and 700 mV vs. Ag/AgCl and show a relatively low resistance. A wide range of transmitters is shown to oxidize readily on the electrodes. Kinetic rate constants and half wave potentials are reported. The capacitance per area was found to be high (1670 ± 130 μF cm(-2)) compared to other thin film microelectrode materials. Finally, we use constant potential amperometry to measure the release of transmitters from a group of PC 12 cells. The results show how the current response decreases for a series of stimulations with high K(+) buffer.     

聚-3,4-乙烯二氧噻吩导电聚合物纳米粒子的制备及性能

采用反向胶束合成法, 以二乙基磺基琥珀酸钠(AOT)形成的反胶束为模板制备了导电聚合物聚-3,4-乙烯二氧噻吩(PEDOT)纳米粒子. 用紫外-可见-近红外光谱、红外光谱、X射线光电子能谱、扫描电子显微镜及透射电镜等手段对PEDOT粒子进行了表征. 研究了纳米粒子的导电性能并采用石英微天平(QCM)对纳米粒子的气敏特性进行了分析, 对相应导电机理及气体敏感机理进行了讨论.     

Studies on the synthesis and optical and conducting properties of poly[methyltetraphenylphenylsilylene-co-1,4-bis(methylphenylsilyl)phenylene]

Poly(methyltetraphenylphenylsilylene-co-1,4-bis(methylphenylsilyl)phenylene) (PSP) were synthesized by the cocondensation reaction of methyltetraphenylphenyldichlorosilane and 1,4-bis(chloromethylphenylsilyl)benzene with sodium in toluene. The optical and conducting properties of the polymer were investigated. Because of the introducing of tetraphenylphenyl groups to the Si atoms of the polymer, the ultraviolet (UV) absorption wavelengths of the PSP red-shift significantly in the UV region, and a strong photoluminescence band can be observed at visible region. Treatment of the films of PSP with I₂ vapor afforded conducting films.     

Thermal ageing of poly(ethylene oxide)/poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) semi-IPNs

The thermal stability study of a conducting semi-IPN has been reported. The thermo-oxidation of poly(ethylene oxide) (PEO)/poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) semi-Interpenetrating Polymer Network (semi-IPN) was studied at 80 °C in open air. The degradation was followed by spectrophotometry in the visible and near infrared range, cyclic voltamperometry and thermogravimetric analysis. Fluorescence spectrophotometry allowed for the identification of OH by-product originated in the PEO network degradation by the use of a chemiluminescent probe, typically terephthalic acid. The formation of hydroxyl radicals damaged the PEDOT chains as checked by infrared spectroscopy. The mechanism of degradation is further confirmed (i) by introducing a radical scavenger or (ii) by performing a thermal ageing under inert atmosphere; in both cases the semi-IPN life-time is tremendously increased.