Cell attachment and spreading activity of mixed laminin peptide-chitosan membranes

Laminins are a multifunctional molecule with numerous active sites that have been identified in short peptide sequences. Mixed peptide-conjugated chitosan membranes using laminin-derived active peptides have been previously demonstrated to be useful as a biomaterial for tissue engineering. In this study, two syndecan-binding peptides, AG73 (RKRLQVQLSIRT) and C16 (KAFDITYVRLKF), and three integrin-binding peptides, EF1zz (ATLQLQEGRLHFXFDLGKGR, X: Nle, binding to integrin α2β1), A99a (ALRGDN, binding to integrin αvβ3), and A2G10 (SYWYRIEASRTG, binding to integrin α6β1), were mixed in various combinations, conjugated to chitosan membranes, and evaluated for their cell attachment and spreading activities. The cell attachment and spreading activity of EF1zz, A99a, and A2G10 were enhanced by AG73. In contrast, C16 enhanced only the cell attachment and spreading activity of A99a and did not influence the activity of EF1zz and A2G10. As well as previous study, the AG73-chitosan membrane bound to only syndecan. On the other hand, the C16-chitosan membrane interacted with both syndecan and β1 integrin. These data suggest that interaction of different receptors can cause synergistic effects. Therefore, AG73 is widely applicable as a synergistic agent for mixed peptide-matrices using several types of integrin-binding peptides. Additionally, the A2G10/AG73-chitosan membrane may be useful to investigate detailed biological functions of α6β1 integrin, which is a major laminin-binding receptor. Using a combination of tissue-appropriate laminin-derived peptides, the mixed peptide-chitosan membranes may serve as functional biomaterials for tissue engineering.