Cell guidance by ultrafine topography <i>in vitro</i>

TLDR

Laser holography and microelectronic fabrication produced 260‑nm period grating surfaces in fused quartz to emulate extracellular matrix topography, a scale previously shown to influence cell behavior in vitro and in vivo. The study examined how BHK cells, MDCK cells, and chick embryo cerebral neurones aligned on these gratings of varying depths (100, 210, and 400 nm). While all gratings aligned BHK cells and induced depth‑dependent alignment and elongation in single MDCK cells, MDCK islands and neurite outgrowth were largely unaffected, demonstrating that ultrafine topography can guide cell behavior but its effectiveness depends on cell type and cell‑cell interactions.

Abstract

ABSTRACT Laser holography and microelectronic fabrication techniques have been employed to make grating surfaces in fused quartz with ultrafine period (260 nm) in an attempt to mimic the topography of aligned fibrillar extracellular matrix (ECM), which, in the past, has been shown to affect the behaviour of cells in vitro and in vivo. The alignment of BHK cells, MDCK cells and chick embryo cerebral neurones on 260 nm period grating surfaces (130 nm grooves separated by 130 nm) of various depths (100, 210 and 400 nm) was examined. While all gratings aligned BHK cell populations, the degree of alignment was dependent on depth. The response of single MDCK cells to the grating patterns was both to align precisely to the direction of the gratings, and to elongate; only their elongation was depth-dependent. MDCK cells that were part of epithelial cell islands, and the outgrowth of neurites from chick embryo neurones, were mainly unaffected by the grating surfaces. It is clear that topography on this scale can control cell behaviour, but guidance of this type is strongly dependent on cell type and cell-cell interactions.