Layer-by-Layer assembly of heparin and peptide-polyethylene glycol conjugates to form hybrid nanothin films of biomatrices

We investigated the utility of a heparin/peptide-polyethylene glycol conjugate system to build Layer-by-Layer (LbL) structures, to assemble tailored multilayer-biomatrices for cell culture. The LbL assembly balances the advantages of polyelectrolyte systems and protein-based systems. Human umbilical vein endothelial cells showed distinct responses to: the film thickness and structure; the presence, density and spatial arrangement of a cell adhesion ligand within the nanothin film; and the pretreatment of the film with morphogens. The LbL technique presents a versatile tool for modifying cell culture substrates with defined and diverse biochemical and structural features, for investigating cell-material interactions.