The development of
silicone catheters has improved the treatment of
hydrocephalus. Unfortunately, the functionality of the
catheters used for the treatment of
hydrocephalus is compromised by cell obstruction. In this study
silicone surfaces coated with
biopolymers (
heparin and
hyaluronan) and self-assembled monolayers (SAM) (
octadecyltrichlorosilane-
OTS and fluoroalkylsilane-FAS) were employed to investigate the effect of these coatings on astrocyte and choroid plexus cell growth in vitro. Compared to unmodified
silicone, FAS surfaces significantly reduced (p<0.05) astrocyte proliferation,
heparin (p<0.001) and
hyaluronan (p<0.001) surfaces significantly increased astrocyte growth, while no significant difference was observed on
OTS surfaces. A similar trend was observed for choroid plexus cell growth on
heparin (p<0.05) and
hyaluronan (p<0.05) coatings, however, no significant reduction in cell growth was observed on FAS- or
OTS-coated surfaces compared to
silicone. Low cell growth may be attributed to hydrophobicity of the surfaces (FAS 112.2+/-2.6 degrees ,
OTS 102.2+/-1.3 degrees). Contact angle measurements confirmed the stability of the hydrophobic and hydrophilic properties of all the coatings on the
silicone surfaces for 30 days. Surface roughness did not play an important role on cell growth.
Silicone shunts coated with
SAMs may be suitable for future clinical applications to improve the treatment of
hydrocephalus.