The changes of cell adhesion to collagen-coated Al2O3 by ion bombardment

Immobilization of protein to artificial materials by ion bombardment to enhance cell adhesion has been studied. Type-I collagen was coated onto alumina and bombarded with 50 keV He+ ions at doses between 2×1012 and 1×1015 ions/cm2. The collagen-coated surfaces were mounted on parallel-plate flow chambers, with a flowing shear stress of 2 Pa for 1 h, in a flow system prepared for tests of collagen adhesive strength. After bovine aorta endothelial cells (BAEC) were cultured onto ion-bombarded specimens in a culture medium, a cell adhesive strength test was carried out under the same experimental conditions as the collagen adhesive strength test. The result was that the collagen adhesion strength decreased for specimens bombarded with less than 1×1013 ions/cm2. As the dose increased, the collagen adhesive strength also increased. The cell adhesive strength of He+-ion-bombarded collagen-coated alumina increased at a dose of 1×1014 ions/cm2 and decreased at doses of 1×1013 and 1×1015 ions/cm2.