Microgrooved collagen-based corneal scaffold for promoting collective cell migration and antifibrosis

Collagen is a promising material for corneal tissue engineering. The surface topography of collagen is critical for cornea reconstruction and regeneration. Herein, we fabricated collagen films with microgrooved surface to investigate the effect of collagen film topography on corneal cell migration and antifibrosis. We found that the patterned films with microscale grooves could greatly affect the orientation, proliferation, migration, and gene expression of rabbit corneal epithelial cells and keratocytes. Compared with the natural cornea, the optimized collagen films with microgroove pattern show similar swelling performance, optical clarity, and biodegradability, which could efficiently promote the epithelial cell migration, accelerate wound healing process, and inhibit the fibrosis of keratocytes. These results suggest that collagen films with microgroove pattern are promising in corneal tissue engineering.