title: Fabrication of cell container arrays with overlaid surface topographies.
abstract: This paper presents cell culture substrates in the form of microcontainer arrays with overlaid surface topographies, and a technology for their fabrication. The new fabrication technology is based on microscale thermoforming of thin polymer films whose surfaces are topographically prepatterned on a micro- or nanoscale. For microthermoforming, we apply a new process on the basis of temporary back moulding of polymer films and use the novel concept of a perforated-sheet-like mould. Thermal micro- or nanoimprinting is applied for prepatterning. The novel cell container arrays are fabricated from polylactic acid (PLA) films. The thin-walled microcontainer structures have the shape of a spherical calotte merging into a hexagonal shape at their upper circumferential edges. In the arrays, the cell containers are arranged densely packed in honeycomb fashion. The inner surfaces of the highly curved container walls are provided with various topographical micro- and nanopatterns. For a first validation of the microcontainer arrays as in vitro cell culture substrates, C2C12 mouse premyoblasts are cultured in containers with microgrooved surfaces and shown to align along the grooves in the three-dimensional film substrates. In future stem-cell-biological and tissue engineering applications, microcontainers fabricated using the proposed technology may act as geometrically defined artificial microenvironments or niches.
authors: MIRA Institute for Biomedical Technology and Technical Medicine, Department of Tissue Regeneration, University of Twente, Drienerlolaan 5, 7522 NB, Enschede, The Netherlands. r.k.truckenmuller@utwente.nl
authors: Roman
authors: R
authors: Truckenmüller
authors: Stefan
authors: S
authors: Giselbrecht
authors: Maryana
authors: M
authors: Escalante-Marun
authors: Max
authors: M
authors: Groenendijk
authors: Bernke
authors: B
authors: Papenburg
authors: Nicolas
authors: N
authors: Rivron
authors: Hemant
authors: H
authors: Unadkat
authors: Volker
authors: V
authors: Saile
authors: Vinod
authors: V
authors: Subramaniam
authors: Albert
authors: A
authors: van den Berg
authors: Clemens
authors: C
authors: van Blitterswijk
authors: Matthias
authors: M
authors: Wessling
authors: Jan
authors: J
authors: de Boer
authors: Dimitrios
authors: D
authors: Stamatialis
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002460:Cell Line; D057166:High-Throughput Screening Assays; D019344:Lactic Acid / Q000737:chemistry; D051379:Mice; D011091:Polyesters; D011108:Polymers / Q000737:chemistry*; D013499:Surface Properties; D023822:Tissue Engineering / Q000379:methods*
chemical_list: D011091:Polyesters; D011108:Polymers; D019344:Lactic Acid; C033616:poly(lactide)