How a Nano-Thin Coating Could Improve Blood-Contacting Devices

What makes a coating actually useful in MedTech: performance, manufacturability, regulatory practicality, or all three?

In this episode of MedTech Unboxed, Steve talks with Chris and Glen about Alta Biomed’s coating platform and why it has gained attention across blood-contacting medical device applications. They break down the company’s flagship PZF coating, a nano-thin polymer coating designed to be anti-thrombogenic, support healthy endothelialization, reduce inflammatory response, and maintain durability on implantable devices.

Chris explains how the coating works, why elasticity matters for minimizing coating loss, and how the process can be applied to a wide range of substrates, including metals, plastics, textiles, and even PTFE. The conversation also covers where the technology fits best, from coronary stents and structural heart devices to LVADs, neurovascular applications, PICC lines, and central venous ports.

The episode also gets practical. The team walks through Alta Biomed’s in-house hemocompatibility testing, including human blood flow loop testing, fast-turn feasibility work, and particulate testing for regulatory support. Glen then explains the business side of the platform, including coating services, tech transfer, licensing, manufacturing support, and flexible commercial models built to help device companies move faster without creating unnecessary business friction.

If you work on blood-contacting devices and need to think beyond just “can we coat it?” to “will it hold up, test well, and scale?”, this episode is a strong overview of what that process can look like.

What you’ll hear in this episode:

• What PZF is and why it matters for blood-contacting devices
• How the coating supports thromboresistance and endothelial healing
• Why nano-thin coatings can still act as effective barriers
• How Alta applies the coating with a dip-coating process
• Why adhesion and particulate performance matter so much
• What in-house hemocompatibility testing looks like
• How Alta supports customers from feasibility to commercial scale
• Different partnership models, from service coating to tech transfer and licensing