Influence of surface roughness on neural differentiation of human induced pluripotent stem cells

Issue title: Selected Presentations held at the 35th Conference of the German Society for Clinical Microcirculation and Hemorheology, Mainz, Germany, 4-5 November, 2016

Guest editors: F. Jung and T. Gori

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Li, Zhengdong^{a; b} | Wang, Weiwei^a | Kratz, Karl^{a; c} | Küchler, Judit^{a; 1} | Xu, Xun^{a; b} | Zou, Jie^{a; b} | Deng, Zijun^a | Sun, Xianlei^a | Gossen, Manfred^{a; c} | Ma, Nan^{a; b; c; *} | Lendlein, Andreas^{a; b; c; *}

Affiliations: [a] Institute of Biomaterial Science and Berlin-Brandenburg Center for Regenerative Therapies, Helmholtz-Zentrum Geesthacht, Teltow, Germany | [b] Institute of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany | [c] Helmholtz Virtual Institute - Multifunctional Materials in Medicine, Teltow, Germany

Correspondence: [*] Corresponding author: Prof. Dr. Nan Ma and Prof. Dr. Andreas Lendlein, Institute of Biomaterial Science and Berlin-Brandenburg Centre for Regenerative Therapies, Helmholtz Zentrum Geesthacht, Kantstrasse 55, 14513 Teltow, Germany. Tel.: +49 0 3328 352 450; Fax: +49 0 3328 352 452; E-mail: nan.ma@hzg.de (N. Ma); andreas.lendlein@hzg.de (A. Lendlein).

Note: [1] Present address: Berlin Institute of Health, Stem Cell Core Facility, Augustenburger Platz 1, 13353 Berlin, Germany.

Abstract: Induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) own the capacity to develop into all cell types of the adult body, presenting high potential in regenerative medicine. Regulating and controlling the differentiation of iPSCs using the surface topographic cues of biomaterials is a promising and safe approach to enhance their therapeutic efficacy. In this study, we tested the effects of surface roughness on differentiation of human iPSCs into neural progenitor cells and dopaminergic neuron cells using polystyrene with different roughness (R0: flat surface; R1: rough surface, Rq ∼ 6 μm; R2: rough surface, Rq ∼ 38 μm). Neural differentiation of human iPSCs could be influenced by surface roughness. Up-regulated neuronal markers were found in cells on rough surface, as examined by real-time PCR and immunostaining. Particularly, the R1 surface significantly improved the neuronal marker expression, as compared to R0 and R2 surface. This study demonstrates the significance of surface roughness, depending on the roughness level, in promoting differentiation of human iPSCs towards the neuronal lineage. Our study suggests the potential applications of surface roughness in iPSCs based treatment of neural disorder diseases, and highlights the importance of design and development of biomaterials with effective surface structures to regulate stem cells.

Keywords: Human iPSCs, roughness, neural differentiation, regenerative medicine

DOI: 10.3233/CH-168121

Journal: Clinical Hemorheology and Microcirculation, vol. 64, no. 3, pp. 355-366, 2016