Modulation of cell adhesion complexes by surface protein patterns.

Cell adhesion is an important process in several biological phenomena. To investigate the formation and organization of focal adhesions, we developed a patterning approach based on electron beam lithography. Nanodots (radius <1230 nm) and nanorings (inner radius <320 nm) of fibronectin (FN) were patterned on a K-Casein background. Intracellular vinculin immunofluorescence mirrored the FN nanopatterns. Atomic force microscopy showed that FN nanodots and nanorings organize the immediate cytoskeleton into straight fibrils and diverging fibril bundles, respectively. Our results suggest that a minimum of approximately 40 FN molecules is required for a cell to form a focal adhesion.