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Updated: May 10, 2026

Evaluation of the Interplay Between the Complement Protein C1q and Hyaluronic Acid in Promoting Cell Adhesion
Published on: June 15, 2019
Small-molecule-induced clustering of heparan sulfate promotes cell adhesion
Naohiro Takemoto1, Tetsuya Suehara, Heidie L Frisco
1Institute for Integrated Cell-Material Sciences (WPI-iCeMS), Kyoto University, Uji, Kyoto 611-0011, Japan.
Abstract:
Adhesamine is an organic small molecule that promotes adhesion and growth of cultured human cells by binding selectively to heparan sulfate on the cell surface. The present study combined chemical, physicochemical, and cell biological experiments, using adhesamine and its analogues, to examine the mechanism by which this dumbbell-shaped, non-peptidic molecule induces physiologically relevant cell adhesion. The results suggest that multiple adhesamine molecules cooperatively bind to heparan sulfate and induce its assembly, promoting clustering of heparan sulfate-bound syndecan-4 on the cell surface. A pilot study showed that adhesamine improved the viability and attachment of transplanted cells in mice. Further studies of adhesamine and other small molecules could lead to the design of assembly-inducing molecules for use in cell biology and cell therapy.
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