Published in

Wiley Open Access, Advanced NanoBiomed Research, 1(2), 2021

DOI: 10.1002/anbr.202100131

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Controlled Glioma Cell Migration and Confinement Using Biomimetic‐Patterned Hydrogels

Journal article published in 2021 by EunBi Oh, Brian Meckes, Jinyoung Chang, Donghoon Shin ORCID, Chad A. Mirkin ORCID
This paper is made freely available by the publisher.
This paper is made freely available by the publisher.

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Data provided by SHERPA/RoMEO

Abstract

Cancer cell migration is significantly influenced by the physical properties (e.g., mechanics, topography) of the local extracellular matrix (ECM). However, how cells guide their movement in a complex, heterogeneous landscape while interpreting various physical factors, especially those with sizes on the subcellular length scale, is not completely understood. Herein, a photodegradable hydrogel is fabricated with control over the spatial distribution of features with different physical characteristics. On the surface of this hydrogel, patterns of features with sizes and spacings on the subcellular to cellular length scale are generated using a digital micromirror device, and the influence of the organization of these patterns on cellular migratory behavior is investigated. The size and spatial arrangement of hard (or stiff) and soft domains, more so than their topography, is found to have a significant impact on the migration speed. Using this approach, the maximum migration speed is observed on hydrogels with 10 μm pattern sizes spaced 10 μm apart. In this regime, the cells are confined and interact with both hard and soft regions at their periphery. Together, this study of cell–ECM interactions at the interface of hard and soft domains provides insights into how cancer cells interact with their environment.