Adsorption force of fibronectin on various surface chemistries and its vital role in osteoblast adhesion

The amount, type, and conformation of proteins adsorbed on an implanted biomaterial are believed to influence cell adhesion. Nevertheless, only a few research works have been dedicated to the contribution of protein adsorption force. To verify our hypothesis that the adsorption force of protein on biomaterial is another crucial mediator to cell adhesion, fibronectin (FN) adsorbed on self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) with terminal -OH, -CH3, and -NH2 was quantified for FN adsorption force (F(ad)) by utilizing a sphere/plane adsorption model and parallel plate flow chamber. As revealed, F(ad) on SAMs followed a chemistry-dependence of -NH2 > -CH3 ≫ -OH. It is further demonstrated that F(ad) together with FN conformation could regulate the late osteoblast adhesion and the consequent reorganization of the adsorbed FN and fibrillogenesis of the endogenous FN. Our study suggests that protein adsorption force plays a key role in cell adhesion and should be involved for better biomaterial design.