Controlling the migration behaviors of vascular smooth muscle cells by methoxy poly(ethylene glycol) brushes of different molecular weight and density

Cell migration is an important biological activity. Regulating the migration of vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs) is critical in tissue engineering and therapy of cardiovascular disease. In this work, methoxy poly(ethylene glycol) (mPEG) brushes of different molecular weight (Mw 2 kDa, 5 kDa and 10 kDa) and grafting mass (0–859 ng/cm2) were prepared on aldehyde-activated glass slides, and were characterized by X-ray photoelectron spectrometer (XPS) and quartz crystal microbalance with dissipation (QCM-d). Adhesion and migration processes of VSMCs were studied as a function of different mPEG Mw and grafting density. We found that these events were mainly regulated by the grafting mass of mPEG regardless of mPEG Mw and grafting density. The VSMCs migrated on the surfaces randomly without a preferential direction. Their migration rates increased initially and then decreased along with the increase of mPEG grafting mass. The fastest rates (∼24 μm/h) appeared on the mPEG brushes with grafting mass of 300–500 ng/cm2 depending on the Mw. Cell adhesion strength, arrangement of cytoskeleton, and gene and protein expression levels of adhesion related proteins were studied to unveil the intrinsic mechanism. It was found that the cell–substrate interaction controlled the cell mobility, and the highest migration rate was achieved on the surfaces with appropriate adhesion force.