Self-assembled supramolecular polymers with tailorable properties that enhance cell attachment and proliferation
Journal
Acta Biomaterialia
Journal Volume
50
Pages
476-483
Date Issued
2017
Author(s)
Abstract
Self-assembled supramolecular scaffolds, a combination of noncovalent interactions within a biocompatible polymer substrate, can be used for efficient construction of highly-controlled self-organizing hierarchical structures; these newly-developed biomaterials exhibit excellent mechanical properties, tunable surface hydrophilicity, low cytotoxicity and high biodegradability, making them highly attractive for tissue engineering and regenerative medicine applications. Herein, we demonstrate a novel supramolecular poly(£`-caprolactone) (PCL) containing self-complementary sextuple hydrogen-bonded uracil-diamidopyridine (U-DPy) moieties, which undergoes spontaneous self-assembly to form supramolecular polymer networks. Inclusion of various U-DPy contents enhanced the mechanical strength and viscosities of the resulting materials by up to two orders of magnitude compared to control PCL. Surface wettability and morphological studies confirmed physically-crosslinked films can be readily tailored to provide the desired surface properties. Cell viability assays indicated the excellent in vitro biocompatibility of U-DPy-functionalized substrates and indicate the potential of these materials for various biomedical applications. More importantly, mouse fibroblast NIH/3T3 cells cultured on these substrates displayed a more elongated cell morphology and had substantially higher cell densities than cells seeded on control PCL substrate, which indicates that introduction of U-DPy moieties into polymer matrixes could be used to create tissue culture surfaces that enhance cell attachment and proliferation. This new system is suggested as a potential route towards the practical realization of next-generation tissue-engineering scaffolds. Statement of Significance In this study, we report a significant breakthrough in development of self-assembled supramolecular polymers to form well-defined scaffolds through self-complementary hydrogen-bonding interactions. These newly developed materials exhibited extremely good mechanical properties, fine-tunable hydrophilic characteristics and excellent biocompatibility due to hydrogen-bond-induced physical cross-linking. Importantly, cell adhesion and proliferation assays indicated that these substrates efficiently promoted the growth of mouse embryonic fibroblasts NIH/3T3 cells in vitro. Thus, this finding provides a simple and effective route for the development of next-generation tissue-engineering scaffolds that have improved mechanical properties, increased surface hydrophilicity and can enhance the growth and biological activity of adherent cells. ? 2016 Acta Materialia Inc.
Subjects
Bioactive scaffolds
Multiple hydrogen bonds
Self-assembly
Supramolecular chemistry
Tissue engineering
SDGs
Other Subjects
Bioactivity; Biocompatibility; Biodegradability; Biomechanics; Cell adhesion; Cell culture; Cell engineering; Crosslinking; Fibroblasts; Hydrophilicity; Ions; Mammals; Medical applications; Scaffolds (biology); Self assembly; Substrates; Supramolecular chemistry; Tissue; Bioactive scaffold; Cell attachments; In-vitro; Multiple hydrogen bond; NIH-3T3 cells; Supramolecular polymers; Surface hydrophilicity; Tissue engineering scaffold; Tissues engineerings; Tunables; Hydrogen bonds; polycaprolactone; cross linking reagent; polycaprolactone; polyester; polymer; pyridine derivative; uracil; water; 3T3 cell line; animal experiment; Article; biocompatibility; cell adhesion; cell density; cell proliferation; cell structure; cell viability assay; controlled study; crystal structure; differential scanning calorimetry; hydrogen bond; hydrophilicity; in vitro study; mouse; nonhuman; priority journal; supramolecular chemistry; surface property; tissue engineering; tissue scaffold; viscosity; wettability; animal; cell adhesion; cell proliferation; cell survival; chemistry; cytology; fibroblast; flow kinetics; human; NIH 3T3 cell line; small angle scattering; tumor cell line; X ray diffraction; Animals; Cell Adhesion; Cell Line, Tumor; Cell Proliferation; Cell Survival; Cross-Linking Reagents; Fibroblasts; Humans; Hydrogen Bonding; Mice; NIH 3T3 Cells; Polyesters; Polymers; Pyridines; Rheology; Scattering, Small Angle; Uracil; Water; X-Ray Diffraction
Type
journal article