Neurite development in PC12 cells cultured on nanopillars and nanopores with sizes comparable with filopodia

Furqan Haq¹, Venkatramani Anandan¹, Charles Keith^2,4, Guigen Zhang^1,3,4

¹Micro/Nano Bioengineering Lab, Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering; ²Department of Cellular Biology, ³Nanoscale Science and Engineering Center, ⁴Faculty of Engineering, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602, USA

Abstract: We investigated the effect of nanoscale topography on neurite development in pheochromocytoma (PC12 cells) by culturing the cells on substrates having nanoscale pillars and pores with sizes comparable with filipodia. We found that cells on nanopillars and nanopores developed fewer and shorter neurites than cells on smooth substrates, and that cells on nanopores developed more and longer neurites than cells on nanopillars. These results suggest that PC12 cells were spatially aware of the difference in the nanoscale structures of the underlying substrates and responded differently in their neurite extension. This finding points to the possibility of using nanoscale topographic features to control neurite development in neurons.

Keywords: nanopillars, nanopores, substrates, neurite extension, PC12 cells