title: Contribution of actin filaments and microtubules to cell elongation and alignment depends on the grating depth of microgratings.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  It has been reported that both chemical and physical surface patterns influence cellular behaviors, such as cell alignment and elongation. However, it still remains unclear how actin filament and microtubules (MTs) differentially respond to these patterns.
  
  
  RESULTS
  We examined the effects of chemical and physical patterns on cell elongation and alignment by observing actin filament and MTs of retinal pigment epithelium-1(RPE-1) cells, which were cultured on either fibronectin (FN)-line pattern (line width and spacing: 1 μm) or FN-coated 1 μm gratings with two different depths (0.35 or 1 μm). On the surface with either FN-line pattern or micrograting structure, the cell aspect ratios were at least two times higher than those on the surface with no pattern. Cell elongation on the gratings depended on the depth of the gratings. Cell elongation and alignment on both FN-line pattern and 1 μm gratings with 0.35 μm depth were perturbed either by inhibition of actin polymerization or MT depletion, while cell elongation and alignment on 1 μm gratings with 1 μm depth were perturbed only by MT depletion.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our results suggest that the contribution of actin filaments and MTs to the elongation and alignment of epithelial cells on microgratings depends on the groove depth of these gratings.
authors.affiliation: Mechanobiology Institute (MBI), National University of Singapore, Singapore, 117411, Singapore.
authors.forename: Kyunghee
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Mechanobiology Institute (MBI), National University of Singapore, Singapore, 117411, Singapore.|Department of Chemistry and Nano Sciences (BK21 plus), Ewha Womans University, Seoul, 120-750, South Korea.
authors.forename: Ee Hyun
authors.initials: EH
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry and Nano Sciences (BK21 plus), Ewha Womans University, Seoul, 120-750, South Korea.
authors.forename: Naeun
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Oh
authors.affiliation: Mechanobiology Institute (MBI), National University of Singapore, Singapore, 117411, Singapore.
authors.forename: Nguyen Anh
authors.initials: NA
authors.lastname: Tuan
authors.affiliation: Department of Nano Bio Research, National Nanofab Center (NNFC), Daejeon, 305-806, South Korea.
authors.forename: Nam Ho
authors.initials: NH
authors.lastname: Bae
authors.affiliation: Department of Nano Bio Research, National Nanofab Center (NNFC), Daejeon, 305-806, South Korea.
authors.forename: Seok Jae
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Department of Nano Bio Research, National Nanofab Center (NNFC), Daejeon, 305-806, South Korea.
authors.forename: Kyoung G
authors.initials: KG
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Seoul Center, Korea Basic Science Institute, Seoul, 136-713, South Korea.
authors.forename: Chi-Yong
authors.initials: CY
authors.lastname: Eom
authors.affiliation: Mechanobiology Institute (MBI), National University of Singapore, Singapore, 117411, Singapore.|Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Waterloo, 200 University Avenue West, Waterloo, ON, N2L 3G1, Canada.
authors.forename: Evelyn K
authors.initials: EK
authors.lastname: Yim
authors.affiliation: School of Mechanical Engineering, Sungkyunkwan University, Suwon, 440-746, South Korea. nanopark@skku.edu.
authors.forename: Sungsu
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Park
mesh_terms: D008841:Actin Cytoskeleton / Q000187:drug effects / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D002460:Cell Line; D048430:Cell Shape / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000502:physiology; D015638:Cytochalasin D / Q000494:pharmacology; D004847:Epithelial Cells / Q000187:drug effects / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D005353:Fibronectins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000494:pharmacology; D006801:Humans; D008870:Microtubules / Q000187:drug effects / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D015739:Nocodazole / Q000494:pharmacology; D055213:Retinal Pigment Epithelium / Q000187:drug effects / Q000648:ultrastructure; D013499:Surface Properties
chemical_list: D005353:Fibronectins; D015638:Cytochalasin D; D015739:Nocodazole
keywords: Actin microfilaments; FN-line pattern; Microgratings; Microtubules; RPE-1