Evaluation of biological functionality of biomaterial surface modified by advanced laser equipment

The study presents a novel high focus laser scanning (HFLS) system, which integrates the advantages of conventional equipment, and demonstrates its superiority. The biological functions of biomaterial surfaces modified using HFLS were investigated. The advantages of HFLS, including ease of use, processing speed, and precision, were validated via morphological analyses such as microscopy, and surface characterization techniques such as contact angle measurements. The material surfaces were modified into the 'Line' and the 'Grid' shapes to facilitate further investigations on cellular response and drug delivery. Cell adhesion, migration, and proliferation were examined to investigate cellular responses to HFLS-modified material surfaces. To evaluate the functionality of HFLS-modified materials as drug carriers, prednisolone (PDS) holding capacity, drug release, platelet adhesion, and western blot analysis for inflammatory cytokines were performed. Compared with conventional methods, HFLS processing proved to be faster and more precise, enabling easy modification of materials into hydrophilic (the Line) or hydrophobic (the Grid) surfaces. The highest contact angle (158.63° ± 1.26) was observed for surfaces processed with a 50 µm wave size. Cell culture medium spread across nearly the entire surface on the Line compared to the control, whereas minimal spread was observed on the Grid. These results align with those of cell adhesion, migration, proliferation, and platelet adhesion assays. Moreover, HFLS-modified materials demonstrated increased PDS retention, with PDS release occurring in a controlled manner rather than disappearance due to rapidly drug eluted. The released PDS maintained an anti-inflammatory effect, reducing the expression of cytokines associated with M1 macrophages. The laser system presented in this study proposes a promising approach for enhancing tissue engineering applications, including surface morphology modification, cytocompatibility improvement, and efficient drug delivery. Additionally, it holds potential for clinical accessibility as an equipment owing to its versatility.