ABSTRACT
Exogenous basic fibroblast growth factor (bFGF) shows therapeutic potential for tissue regeneration, wound healing, and angiogenesis. So, prolonging the bioactivity of bFGF inside the body for a long time is the key point for truly and widely applying bFGF in clinics. In this entry, a plasma treatment method aimed at protecting and prolonging the bioactivity of bFGF inside the body is introduced. In this method, first poly(lactide-co-glycolide) (PLGA) matrix was treated by carbon dioxide (CO2) plasma and then bFGF was immobilized effectively on the plasma-treated PLGA by an electrostatic interaction between the CO2 plasma-treated PLGA and the bFGF. The bFGF could be immobilized on the plasma-treated PLGA and then released slowly with bioactivity from the PLGA matrix. Therefore, the plasma-treated PLGA is a usable carrier for immobilizing and delivering bFGF. Moreover, this technique can be also extended to immobilize other growth factors onto the polymeric matrix after choosing suitable atmospheres and parameters for the plasma treatment.
