Poly(ethylene glycol)‐or silicone‐modified hyaluronan for contact lens wetting agent applications

Hyaluronan (HA) is a hydrophilic biopolymer that has been explored as a wetting agent in contact lens applications. In this study, HA was modified with siloxy or polyethylene glycol moieties using click chemistry to make it more soluble in monomer solutions used to synthesize model contact lens materials; unmodified HA was not soluble in the same monomer solutions. The water contents of the silicone hydrogels were not increased by the presence of modified HA, nor was there a decrease in the surface contact angle. However, modified HA did lead to a reduction in lysozyme adsorption in some cases. The leaching rate of HA modified with polyethylene glycol from a 78:22 DMA:TRIS(OH) hydrogel was significantly slower than for unmodified HA.