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Cell morphology as a design parameter in the bioengineering of cell-biomaterial surface interactions
Oliver G Frost1, Nazanin Owji1,2, Richard Thorogate3
1Regenerative Biomaterials Group, The RAFT Institute & The Griffin Institute, Northwick Park & Saint Mark's Hospital, London, UK. o.frost@griffininstitute.org.uk.
Biomaterials Science
|November 1, 2021
Summary
This study introduces cell morphology as a key factor in biomaterial development. An optimal cell aspect ratio (CAR) between 0.2 and 0.4 enhances both cell proliferation and migration on biomaterials.
Area of Science:
- Biomaterials Science
- Cell Biology
- Bioengineering
Background:
- Controlling cell-surface interactions is crucial for applications like cell sheets and functional coatings.
- Current biomaterial screening is time-consuming and repetitive.
- Cell morphology offers a potential new parameter for bioengineering cell-biomaterial interactions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the hypothesis that an optimal cell morphology range exists for enhanced cell proliferation and migration on biomaterials.
- To establish cell morphology as a predictive parameter for biomaterial screening.
Main Methods:
- Primary porcine dermal fibroblasts (PDF) were cultured on ten different biomaterial surfaces.
- Cell morphology was quantified using the cell aspect ratio (CAR).
- Cell proliferation and migration rates were measured across different CAR ranges.
Main Results:
- An optimal CAR range of 0.2 to 0.4 was identified for enhanced cell proliferation and migration.
- CAR below 0.2 (elongated cells) increased proliferation but reduced migration.
- CAR above 0.4 (rounded cells) favored migration over proliferation.
Conclusions:
- Cell morphology, specifically CAR, can serve as an efficient screening parameter for biomaterial development.
- Utilizing cell morphology can significantly reduce the time and effort in identifying suitable biomaterials.
- Future work will focus on automating CAR quantification for high-throughput screening.
