Micropatterned designs of thermoresponsive surfaces for modulating cell behaviors

The chemistry and topography of the material surfaces have an important effect on cell behaviors. In this study, we reported the preparation of thermoresponsive micropatterned surfaces (TS) and galactosylated TS for modulating the adhesion/detachment of cells. A thickness of 1 µm of poly(N‐isopropylacrylamide) grafted layer was fabricated on the polystyrene surface with microgrooves using ultraviolet‐induced copolymerization. The thick grafted layer was in favor of the interactions between cells and materials. The following immobilization of galactose ligand with specific affinity to hepatocyte onto TS promoted the adhesion of human hepatocyte line (HL‐7702 cells). The microgrooves structure could facilitate cell adhesion and regulate the oriented growth of cells. Moreover, narrow grooves accelerated the spontaneous detachment of cells only by reducing temperature. Thus, micropatterned biofunctional designs with controlled geometrical features presented in this study have sufficient biofunctional activities in facilitating cell sheet engineering and regenerative medicine. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.