A topographically optimized substrate with well-ordered lattice micropatterns for enhancing the osteogenic differentiation of murine mesenchymal stem cells

Although recently a growing number of reports demonstrate that topography or geometry of the substrate also plays an important role in the fate of the stem cells, most of these studies are usually completed by a few distinct patterns such as simple lines, posts, etc. As a result, there is a lack of quantitative analysis of the relationship between topographical variation and the differentiation of stem cells. Here, the effectiveness of topography variation is studied systematically in several microengineered substrates on osteogenic differentiation. It is found that the effectiveness of the osteogenic differentiation has a peak around 3 μm in the interval length of micropatterns.