Mechanical immobilization of Hela cells on aligned carbon nanotube array

We demonstrate that an aligned multi-walled carbon nanotube array can immobilize Hela cells through insertion of the nanotube tips into the cell. The cells were immobilized by pressing onto the nanotube array with the aid of mild centrifugal force. The nanotube array fixed a much larger number of cells compared with the flat surface of a Si substrate, indicating strong binding force of the aligned nanotubes toward the cell. This is the first example of mechanical cell immobilization, which offers future applications of the nanotube array for cellular biology, tissue engineering, and biomolecular devices.