Noninvasive Neuron Pinning with Nanopillar Arrays

• Published in: Nano letters 2010-10, Vol.10 (10), p.4020-4024
• Main Authors: Xie, Chong, Hanson, Lindsey, Xie, Wenjun, Lin, Ziliang, Cui, Bianxiao, Cui, Yi
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Animals; Cell Adhesion; Cell Culture Techniques - methods; Cell Movement; Condensed matter: structure, mechanical and thermal properties; Diffusion in nanoscale solids; Diffusion in solids; Exact sciences and technology; Mechanical and acoustical properties of condensed matter; Mechanical properties of nanoscale materials; Nanostructures - chemistry; Nanostructures - ultrastructure; Neurons - cytology; Physics; Rats; Silicon - chemistry; Silicon Dioxide - chemistry; Tissue Scaffolds - chemistry; Transport properties of condensed matter (nonelectronic)
• ISSN: 1530-6984; 1530-6992
• DOI: 10.1021/nl101950x

Cell migration in a cultured neuronal network presents an obstacle to selectively measuring the activity of the same neuron over a long period of time. Here we report the use of nanopillar arrays to pin the position of neurons in a noninvasive manner. Vertical nanopillars protruding from the surface serve as geometrically better focal adhesion points for cell attachment than a flat surface. The cell body mobility is significantly reduced from 57.8 μm on a flat surface to 3.9 μm on nanopillars over a 5 day period. Yet, neurons growing on nanopillar arrays show a growth pattern that does not differ in any significant way from that seen on a flat substrate. Notably, while the cell bodies of neurons are efficiently anchored by the nanopillars, the axons and dendrites are free to grow and elongate into the surrounding area to develop a neuronal network, which opens up opportunities for long-term study of the same neurons in connected networks.