Surface Modification of Polyglycolic Acid Fibers by Hydrogen Peroxide for Enhancing Hydrophilicity and Cytocompatibility

Hydrogen peroxide（ H2O2） is applied for surface modification of polyglycolic acid（ PGA） fibers in order to enhance the hydrophilicity and cytocompatibility of PGA fibers effectively,and maintain the breaking strength as the same time. PGA fibers are dipped in H2O2 solution a certain time for modification. Scanning electron microscopy（ SEM） was used to observe the surface morphology of PGA fibers before and after modification. The varying of PGA macromolecule was examined with Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy（ FTIR） analyses. X-ray diffraction（ XRD） and differential scanning calorimetry（ DSC） analysis showed that crystallinity slightly decreases. Mechanical performance test showed tensile force of modified PGA fiber was increased. The water contact angle test indicated the improving of hydrophilic. A cell proliferation assay showed that fibroblast cells attach and proliferate well on the fibers, which meant the modified fibers possess good cytocompatibility. These results suggest that H2O2 surface modification is easy to operate and a advantageous modification method for PGA fibers.