Human osteoblast-like cells response to nanofunctionalized surfaces for tissue engineering

Cells are sensitive both to the micro/nanotopographic and chemical features of their surrounding environment. The engineering of the surface properties of biomaterials is then critical to develop bioactive devices with which to elicit appropriate cellular responses. To this regard, the layer by layer (LBL) self assembly technique represents a simple and versatile method to modify surface properties by the deposition of ultrathin films with specific and predetermined properties. In this work biomimetic coatings containing fibronectin, an adhesive glycoprotein of the extracellular matrix, were assembled by means of the LBL technique, and tested for the growth of MG63 human osteoblast-like cells, in order to evaluate their potential for the treatment of materials employed in bone-tissue engineering. As a first step the assembly process was optimized by quartz crystal microbalance measurements and subsequently was repeated on nickel/titanium, silicon and glass samples. The results obtained from the investigation of cell response to the modified surfaces, put in evidence that the deposited nanostructured ultrathin films are effective in promoting cell proliferation. Our results show the high potential of the developed bioactive coatings for the engineering of biomimetic implants and for the optimization of their integration with the surrounding tissues. (c) 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.