Micro checkerboard patterned polymeric surface with discrete rigidity for studying cell migration

The control of cell migration has an important role in processes ranging from developmental morphogenesis to the pathogenesis. In this study, we describe a novel approach to develop a micro-checkerboard patterned polymeric flat surface with discrete surface stiffness. This platform as a culture substrate allows us to explore the mechanism of durotaxis, referred to as the directed cell movement via the gradient of surface stiffness. The flat surface with different rigidity was achieved in two stages of fabrication. First, polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) was pressed and cured on a glass substrate with trenches of varying depths in a checkerboard arrangement, and then, a thin PDMS layer was spin coated on the previous pattern to make the flat surface. The stiff region is defined by a thin layer (2.5 μm) of PDMS and the soft region is defined by a thick one (7.5 μm). To investigate the migratory cell behavior, the NIH 3T3 cell was cultured. The result demonstrates that a single cell showed clearly a migratory cell behavior toward the stiffer regions driven by the difference of effective surface stiffness. At high cell density, the effect of cell migration on effective surface stiffness decreased with increasing cell-cell interactions. However, cell migration was still dominated by difference of effective surface stiffness while fluctuating at the boundary between the stiff and soft regions. This approach enables us to control the mechanical and topological properties of surface. The developed platform will also offer a useful tool to study cell-substrate interaction mediated by surface stiffness (e.g. mechanotransduction).