Development of an immunosuppressive camouflage-coating platform with nanocellulose and cell membrane vesicles

Biomedical devices trigger immune responses when implanted in the body, as they are treated as foreign bodies. To avoid inflammatory responses and enhance the biocompatibility of biomedical devices, advanced coating technology that can modulate immune responses is essential. As a part of the immune response in the body, autologous cells evade attack from macrophages using CD47 ligands that function as markers for self. Inspired by this self-recognition system, we developed a camouflage coating for biomaterial surfaces using cell membrane vesicles that could suppress inflammatory responses. In this study, we used monocyte-derived cell membrane vesicles expressing CD47 for coating nanocellulose-coated substrates. Our data showed that presentation of CD47 to macrophages elicited negative signal transduction for immunosuppression. Further, for coating, we used cell membrane vesicles and plant-derived nanofibers. We observed that the supporting layer of cellulose nanofibers physically fixed cell membrane vesicles and provided hydrophilic surfaces to the polystyrene substrate. Based on CD47 signaling, cell membrane vesicle coating suppressed the inflammatory responses of stimulated macrophages. Camouflaging biomaterial surfaces with cell-derived components might serve as an advanced coating platform to suppress inflammatory responses and enhance tissue integrity for biomedical devices after implantation.