Effects of surface molecular chirality on adhesion and differentiation of stem cells

Chirality is one of the most fascinating and ubiquitous cues in nature, especially in life. The effects of chiral surfaces on stem cells have, however, not yet been revealed. Herein we examined the molecular chirality effect on stem cell behaviors. Self assembly monolayers of l- or d-cysteine (Cys) were formed on a glass surface coated with gold. Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) derived from bone marrow of rats exhibited more adhering preference and thus less cell spreading on the l surface than on the d one at the confluent condition. More protein adsorption was observed on the l surface after immersed in cell culture medium with fetal bovine serum. After osteogenic and adipogenic co-induction at the confluent condition, a larger proportion of cells became osteoblasts on the d surface, while the adipogenic fraction on the l surface was found to be higher than on the d surface. In order to interpret how this chirality effect worked, we fabricated Cys microislands of two sizes on the non-fouling poly(ethylene glycol) hydrogel to pre-define the spreading areas of single cells. Then the differentiation extents did not exhibit a significant difference between l and d surfaces under a given area of microislands, yet very significant differences of osteogenesis and adipogenesis were found between different areas. So, the molecular chirality influenced stem cells, probably via favored adsorption of natural proteins on the l surface, which led to more cell adhesion; and the larger cell spreading area with higher cell tension in turn favored osteogenesis rather than adipogenesis. As a result, this study reveals the molecular chirality on material surfaces as an indirect regulator of stem cells.