Biopolymer functionalized reduced graphene oxide with enhanced biocompatibility via mussel inspired coatings/anchors

A green and facile method for preparing biopolymer functionalized reduced graphene oxide (RGO) by using mussel inspired dopamine (DA) as the reducing reagent and the functionalized molecule is proposed. In the study, GO is reduced by DA and DA is adhered to RGO by one-step pH-induced polymerization of DA (polydopamine, PDA), and then heparin or protein is grafted onto the PDA adhered RGO (pRGO) through catechol chemistry. The obtained pRGO, heparin grafted pRGO (Hep-g-pRGO), and BSA grafted pRGO (BSA-g-pRGO) exhibit fine 2D morphology and excellent stability in water and PBS solution. Furthermore, the biocompatibility of the biopolymer functionalized RGO are investigated using human blood cells and human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs). The biopolymer functionalized RGO exhibits an ultralow hemolysis ratio (lower than 1.8%), and the cellular toxicity assay suggests that the biopolymer functionalized RGO has good cytocompatibility for HUVEC cells, even at a high concentration of 100 μg mL−1. Moreover, the high anticoagulant ability of Hep-g-pRGO indicates that the grafted biopolymer could maintain its biological activity after immobilization onto the surface of pRGO. Therefore, the proposed safe and green biomimetic method confers the biopolymer functionalized RGO with great potential for various biological and biomedical applications.