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Novel transparent nano‐ to micro‐heterogeneous substrates for in‐situ cell migration study
Author(s) -
Tsai Irene Y.,
Green J. Angelo,
Kimura Masahiro,
Jacobson Bruce,
Russell Thomas P.
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
journal of biomedical materials research part a
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.849
H-Index - 150
eISSN - 1552-4965
pISSN - 1549-3296
DOI - 10.1002/jbm.a.30935
Subject(s) - materials science , polyethylene terephthalate , nanometre , adhesion , nanotechnology , substrate (aquarium) , micrometer , nanostructure , nanoscopic scale , cell adhesion , nano , in situ , composite material , optics , physics , meteorology , oceanography , geology
Transparent substrates having heterogeneities ranging from nanometer to micrometer lateral length scale were fabricated to study cell migration. The surfaces were generated using thin films of block copolymers and homopolymer blends on ultra smooth transparent polyethylene terephthalate films. Results show that the lateral size scale of the surface heterogeneities affects fibroblast (NIH‐3T3) adhesion, spreading and motility. More specifically, fibroblasts migrate faster on micron‐sized than on nanometer‐sized heterogeneities. Cell movements and morphology on the micron patterned surfaces resemble cells cultured in a 3D environment. These surfaces, therefore, can potentially be utilized as models to study cell behavior in physiologically relevant conditions which can add to our fundamental understanding of cell‐substrate interactions and facilitate development of surfaces for medical devices. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res 2007