AVS 53rd International Symposium
    Biomaterial Interfaces Tuesday Sessions
       Session BI-TuA

Paper BI-TuA7
Surface Chemical Gradients to Optimise Substrata for Self-Renewal of ES Cells

Tuesday, November 14, 2006, 4:00 pm, Room 2001

Session: Cells at Surfaces
Presenter: R.D. Short, University of Sheffield, UK
Authors: R.D. Short, University of Sheffield, UK
P. Murray, University of Liverpool, UK
K. Parry, Plasso Technology
D. Edgar, University of Liverpool, UK
R.S. McGreal, University of Liverpool, UK
Correspondent: Click to Email
Various reports detail how the culture conditions for mouse ES (mES) and human (hES) may be manipulated to maintain these cells in an undifferentiated state.@footnote 1,2@ Significant differences between mES and hES cells have been commented upon, as well as common mechanisms in maintaining self-renewal. It has been recently shown@footnote 3@ that the self-renewal of mES and hES cells can be promoted by restricting the degree to which these cells spread. This result implies that the self-renewal mES and hES cells can occur when their spreading is restricted by culture on weakly adhesive substrates. Herein, we show how using surface chemical gradients, of varying carboxylic acid density,@footnote 4@ an optimal chemistry is readily identified whereby cells can be maintained in compact small colonies, retaining cell-cell contact, without loss of the key ES cell markers, alkaline phosphatase and Oct-4. Our preliminary results are strongly suggestive that the capacity of ES cells for self-renewal may be maintained by surface chemistry alone. If true, this has the important implication that geometric control (ie control over cells spreading) is an important factor in the maintenance of self-renewal. Surface chemical gradients are an ideal tool for rapid (high throughput) screening. @FootnoteText@ @footnote 1@A.G. Smith, et al, Nature (1988) 336, 688-690 @footnote 2@T. Burdon et al. Trends Cell Biol.,(2002) 12, 432-38 @footnote 3@Murray P. et al., in preparation @footnote 4@J. D. Whittle, R. D. Short et al. Chem. Comm., (2003) 14; 1766.