Fibronectin (FN) mediates cell-material interactions
during events
such as tissue repair, and therefore the biomimetic modeling of this
proteinin vitrobenefits regeneration. The nature
of the interface is crucial in determining cell adhesion, morphology,
and differentiation. Poly(ethyl acrylate) (PEA) spontaneously organizes
FN into biological nanonetworks, resulting in exceptional bone regeneration
in animal models. Spontaneous network organization of FN is also observed
in poly(buthyl acrylate) (PBA) substrates that have higher surface
mobility than PEA. C2C12 myoblasts differentiate efficiently on PEA
and PBA substrates. In this study, we investigate if intermediate
surface mobilities between PEA and PBA induce cell differentiation
more efficiently than PEA. A family of P(EA-co-BA)
copolymers were synthesized in the entire range of compositions to
finely tune surface mobility between PEA and PBA. Surface characterization
demonstrates that FN mobility steadily increased with the PBA content.
All compositions allowed the biological organization of FN with similar
exposure of cell binding domains. C2C12 myoblasts adhered well in
all the materials, with higher focal adhesions in PEA and PBA. The
increase of the interfacial mobility had an impact in cell adhesion
by increasing the number of FAs per cell. In addition, cell differentiation
decreased proportionally with surface mobility, from PEA to PBA.