Abstract
Adherent cells residing within tissues or biomaterials are presented with 3D geometrical cues from their environment, often in the form of local surface curvatures. While there is growing evidence that cellular decision-making is influenced by substrate curvature, the effect of physiologically relevant, cell-scale anisotropic curvatures remains poorly understood. This study systematically explores the migration behavior of human bone marrow stromal cells (hBMSCs) on a library of anisotropic curved structures. Analysis of cell trajectories reveals that, on convex cylindrical structures, hBMSC migration speed and persistence are strongly governed by the cellular orientation on the curved structure, while migration on concave cylindrical structures is characterized by fast but non-aligned and non-persistent migration. Concurrent presentation of concave and convex substrates on toroidal structures induces migration in the direction where hBMSCs can most effectively avoid cell bending. These distinct migration behaviors are found to be universally explained by the cell-perceived substrate curvature, which on anisotropic curved structures is dependent on both the temporally varying cell orientation and the 3D cellular morphology. This work demonstrates that cell migration is dynamically guided by the perceived curvature of the underlying substrate, providing an important biomaterial design parameter for instructing cell migration in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine.
Highlights
IntroductionConcurrent presentation of concave and convex substrates on toroidal structures induces migration in the direction where human bone marrow stromal cells (hBMSCs) can most effectively avoid cell bending
To systematically study the effect of anisotropic substrate curvature on cell migration, we microfabricated a PDMS chip containing arrays of convex and concave cylindrical structures with diameters (d) ranging from 250 to 1000 μm, corresponding to principal curvatures κ of ± 1/125 to ± 1/500 μm−1. human bone marrow stromal cells (hBMSCs) were seeded on these chips for 3 h and their 3D migration on the structures was followed using time-lapse confocal microscopy for 48 h
The current study discovers that, on anisotropic curved structures, such ability to sense substrate curvature leads to unexpected migration behaviors in terms of directionality, persistence, and speed
Summary
Concurrent presentation of concave and convex substrates on toroidal structures induces migration in the direction where hBMSCs can most effectively avoid cell bending These distinct migration behaviors are found to be universally explained by the cell-perceived substrate curvature, which on anisotropic ridges have convincingly demonstrated that the migration of adherent cells is guided by anisotropic topographical features (i.e., structures with different geometric properties in different directions) of the substrate—a phenomenon termed “contact guidance.”[5,6,7,8,9,10,11] Such studies have curved structures is dependent on both the temporally varying cell orientation and the 3D cellular morphology.
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
