title: [Impact of topographic features of electrospun polymethylmethacrylate nanofibers on growth pattern of rat primary astrocytes].
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the impact of the topographic features of electrospun polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) nanofibers on growth pattern of primary rat astrocytes.
  
  
  METHODS
  Rat astrocytes were cultured on fabricated random and aligned electrospun nanofibers. Using PMMA film as the control, the cells were transfected with a lentivirus harboring GFP gene to reveal the cell growth pattern on different substrates.
  
  
  RESULTS
  oth random and aligned electrospun PMMA nanofibers could support the growth of rat astrocytes, but the topographic features of the fibers significantly affected their growth pattern. On aligned nanofibers, astrocytes extended long cell processes along the direction of the substrate fibers, and on random fibers the astrocytes formed shorter processes. On merged images of GFP expressions and substrate fibers, the cell processes of the astrocytes were shown to adhere to and elongate along the fibers both on random and aligned nanofibers.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The topographic features of PMMA nanofibers can significantly influence the growth pattern of primary rat astrocytes. Aligned electrospun nanofibers has the potential to serve as scaffold material for reducing glia scar formation after spinal cord injury.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurosurgery, First Affiliated Hospital, School of Pharmacy, Chongqing Medical University/Key Laboratory of Biochemistry and Molecular Pharmacology, Chongqing 400016, China. E-mail: xiahaijian1@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: Haijian
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Xia
authors.forename: Dan
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: Dong
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Zhong
authors.forename: Yongzhi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Xia
authors.forename: Yi
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Yan
authors.forename: Wenyuan
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Tang
authors.forename: Xiaochuan
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Sun
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001253:Astrocytes / Q000166:cytology*; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D057139:Nanofibers; D019904:Polymethyl Methacrylate; D051381:Rats; D023822:Tissue Engineering; D054457:Tissue Scaffolds
chemical_list: D019904:Polymethyl Methacrylate