Application of proteinous nanofibrils to culture retinal pigmented epithelium cells: A versatile biomaterial

Recently, self-assembling polypeptides have been shown as the extracellular matrix mimic materials (ECM-mimics) and are particular candidates for tissue engineering and regenerative medicine applications. We selected Hen Egg White Lysozyme (HEWL) as a model protein that represents the amyloid fibrils' networks (AFNs) with ECM mimic chemistry and Nano-topography. The Retinal Pigmented Epithelium (RPE) cells were cultured on the AFNs with different densities and the viability and growth rate of RPE cells along with reactive oxygen species (ROS) production were investigated. The AFNs are able to expedite the attachment of the RPE cells in a concentration dependent manner and provide their long-term survival and also proliferation without significant production of ROS. Dynamic light scattering (DLS) and zeta potential analysis indicated that the prepared AFNs had positive charge with semi-homogenous size. Proteinous base of the AFNs makes them multipurpose materials to be developed for further in situ and animal model experiments as cell culture platforms regarding to retinal tissue engineering.