Impact of Substrate Surface Chemistry on Wharton’s Jelly Mesenchymal Stem Cell Morphological Characteristics, Adherence, and Detachment

Using a multidisciplinary approach combining cell biology assays and physicochemical analyses, the effect of surface chemistry, usually involved in 2D and 3D cell cultures, on the adherence and detachment of Wharton's jelly mesenchymal stem cells (WJ-MSC) was clearly characterized. Values calculated from AFM measurements showed that the Young's modulus of the cells depends on the coating substrate: diethylaminoethyl-dextran (DEAE-D) and carboxypolystyrene (cPS). The adhesion of WJ-MSC was influenced by the composition, charge, and Young's modulus of the surface. High adhesion was observed on DEAE-D. Increasing the wall shear stress decreased the proportion of attached cells on DEAE-D down to ∼20%. For the cPS-coated glass substrate, the fraction of detached cells was higher than that for the DEAE-D surfaces, and at the end of the experiment (maximum wall shear stress of 1 Pa), almost complete detachment was achieved. The experimental strategy used in this work provides information in the field of surface chemistry and may help in the selection and design of efficient microcarriers for cell attachment and detachment during bioreactor cultivation.