Effect of the surface topography and chemistry of poly(3-hydroxybutyrate) substrates on cellular behavior of the murine neuroblastoma Neuro2a cell line

Interactions between cells and substrates play an important role in tissue development during the process of tissue regeneration. Substrates that mimic the surface topography and chemical composition of the extracellular matrix (ECM) lead to enhanced cellular interactions. Electrospinning can easily produce aligned fibrous substrates with an architecture that structurally resembles tissue ECM and can provide contact guidance during tissue regeneration. However, the sole use of substrate materials may not be sufficient for the treatment of damaged tissue due to a lack of biochemical guidance, which helps to promote cell adhesion and proliferation. In the present contribution, we evaluated the effect of the surface properties of various surface-modified electrospun fibrous and solution-cast film PHB substrates in vitro on the murine neuroblastoma Neuro2a cell line. A neat electrospun fibrous and a solution-cast PHB scaffolds were used as the internal control. The results from cell studies suggest that the laminin–PHB fibrous substrate provided better support for the attachment and proliferation of Neuro2a cells than the other substrates. The cellular viability increased from 116% for 4 h of cell seeding to 187% for 3 days of cell seeding. These results suggest that the surface topography and chemistry significantly impact the Neuro2a cell line. The introduction of contact guidance, such as that provided by the fiber diameter and alignment, and biochemical guidance, such as that achieved by the immobilization of adhesive proteins, enhanced cell attachment and proliferation. These results emphasize the importance of surface properties with respect to cellular behavior.