Laser-induced surface structures as substrates for cell alignment or repellence
Sprache des Titels:
Englisch
Original Buchtitel:
73rd Annual Meeting of the Austrian Physical Society (ÖPG)
Original Kurzfassung:
This paper describes methods for achieving directed growth of Schwann cells, a type
of glial cells that can support the regeneration of the nerve pathway by guiding the
neuronal axons in the direction of their alignment [1], or the repellence of
osteoblasts, which build up bones, from the surface of materials of bone implants [2].
These methods imply the exposure of a substrate, typically a titanium alloy or a hard
polymer material, to a linearly polarized pulsed femtosecond laser beam at a
wavelength of 1040 nm, that generates laser-induced periodic surface structures
(LIPSS) with a periodicity of a few hundred nanometers. For both cell types, we show
that the cells grow in a certain direction, predetermined by nanoripples orientation.
In contrast, cells cultivated onto unstructured surfaces, show an omnidirectional
growth behavior. At higher laser fluences and pulse numbers, the irradiation of
titanium alloy surfaces induces the formation of steep micrometer-scale spikes which
are still covered with LIPSS. This hierarchical combination of laser-induced micro- and
nanostructures can lead to the repellence of osteoblasts seeded thereon, which is
promising for applications where medical implants must be removed a certain time
after implantation.
Forschungs-