A large mobility of hydrophilic molecules at the outmost layer controls the protein adsorption and adhering behavior with the actin fiber orientation of human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC).

Adhesion behaviors of human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) are interestingly affected by the mobility of hydrophilic chains on the material surfaces. Surfaces with different molecular mobilities were prepared using ABA-type block copolymers consisting polyrotaxane (PRX) or poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) central block (A block), and amphiphilic anchoring B blocks of poly(2-methacryloyloxyethyl phosphorylcholine-co-n-butyl methacrylate) (PMB). Two different molecular mobilities of the PRX chains were designed by using normal α-cyclodextrin (α-CD) or α-CD whose hydroxyl groups were converted to methoxy groups in a given ratio to improve its molecular mobility (PRX-PMB and OMe-PRX-PMB). The surface mobility of these materials was assessed as the mobility factor (Mf), which is measured by quartz crystal microbalance with dissipation monitoring system. HUVECs adhered on OMe-PRX-PMB surface much more than PRX-PMB and PMB-block-PEG-block-PMB (PEG-PMB) surfaces. These different HUVEC adhesions were correlated with the density of cell-binding site of adsorbed fibronectin. In addition, the alignment of the actin cytoskeleton of adhered HUVECs was strongly suppressed on the PEG-PMB, PRX-PMB, and OMe-PRX-PMB in response to the increased Mf value. Remarkably, the HUVECs adhered on the OMe-PRX-PMB surface with much less actin organization. We concluded that not only the cell adhesion but also the cellular function are regulated by the molecular mobility of the outmost material surfaces.