Cluster-assembled nanostructured materials for cell biology

In their physiological microenvironment cells interact with the extracellular matrix (ECM); a complex structure build up by intertwined nanometric components (proteins and sugar chains). In the last two decades it became increasingly evident that the topographical complexity of the ECM encountered by cells at the nanoscale decisively influences cell behavior and fate through an intricate signaling pathway called mechanotransduction, i.e., the conversion of microenvironmental biophysical and structural cues into corresponding cellular responses. Classical cell culture devices and experimentation did not sufficiently take into account this aspect, and there is a need in cell biological research for substrates that mimic accurately the ECM nanotopography. This chapter introduces the molecular mechanisms by which cells perceive and “interpret” nanotopographical ECM cues and outlines why cluster-assembled nanostructured materials (produced by supersonic cluster beam deposition) are useful in this context as substrates for mechanobiological studies and bioengineering applications by providing reproducible ECM-like nanotopographical features.