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Specific interactions of extracellular matrix proteins with cells and their adhesion to the substrate are important for cell growth. A nanopatterned latex-coated paper substrate previously shown to be an excellent substrate for cell adhesion and 2D growth was studied for directed immobilization of proteins. The nanostructured latex surface was formed by short-wavelength IR irradiation of a two-component latex coating consisting of a hydrophilic film-forming styrene butadiene acrylonitrile copolymer and hydrophobic polystyrene particles. The hydrophobic regions of the IR-treated latex coating showed strong adhesion of bovine serum albumin (cell repelling protein), fibronectin (cell adhesive protein) and streptavidin. Opposite to the IR-treated surface, fibronectin and streptavidin had a poor affinity toward the untreated pristine latex coating. Detailed characterization of the physicochemical surface properties of the latex-coated substrates revealed that the observed differences in protein affinity were mainly due to the presence or absence of the protein repelling polar and charged surface groups. The protein adsorption was assisted by hydrophobic (dehydration) interactions., (Copyright © 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

The use of paper-based test platforms in cell culture experiments is demonstrated. The arrays used for two-dimensional cell cultures were prepared by printing patterned structures on a paper substrate using a hydrophobic polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) ink. The non-printed, PDMS-free areas formed the array for the cell growth experiments. Cell imaging was enabled by using a lipophilic staining agent. A set of coated paper substrates was prepared to study the effect of the physicochemical properties of the substrate (topography, roughness and surface energetics) on cell attachment and growth. The studied paper substrates were found to be cell-repellent or cell-supporting. Cell growth was supported by substrates with a large bearing area, low surface area ratio (Sdr), high total surface free energy and an intermediate electron donor surface energy component. The cells were grown to full confluency within 72 h., (Copyright © 2013 Acta Materialia Inc. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)