Influence of fibrinogen deposition on antifouling property of silicon oil-infused urinary catheters

Benefiting from the ultralow low hysteresis and slippery behaviours, slippery silicone-oil-infused (SOI) coatings have been found to effectively reduce bacterial adhesion under both static and flow conditions. However, in real clinical settings, the use of catheters (e.g., silicone, Si) may trigger local inflammation, leading to release of host-secreted proteins, fibrinogen (Fgn) that deposit on the catheter surfaces, creating a niche that can be exploited by uropathogens to cause infections. In this work, we report on the fabrication of an SOI silver-releasing (AgO) catheter which was expected to prevent or retard the formation of catheter-associated biofilm and encrustation. The AgO catheters demonstrated superior durability due to inherent self-healing properties and outstanding antifouling properties due to water repellence. In the presence of Fgn, the AgO surface could trigger protein conformation and accelerate protein binding, which, in turn, resulted in a loss of liquid repellence and enhanced bacterial binding, migration, biofilm formation, and encrustation.