Adhesion and Osteoblastic Differentiation of Mouse Mesenchymal Stem Cells Overexpressing Cadherin-11 on Scaffold Surfaces

The interface of scaffold and cell affects the cell adhesion and differentiation. Many investigators focus on the surface properties of biomaterials and scaffolds such as their topography, chemistry or surface energy, which very important for cell behaviors such as cell attachment, proliferation, extracellular matrix secretion, and differentiation. As the basic important element, however, the function of cell oneself should not be neglected. In this study, the adhesion and differentiation of mouse mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) overexpressing Cadherin-11 on materials were examined. MSCs were seeded into the large porous scaffolds, acellular bone extracellular matrix scaffolds. Alkaline phosphatase activity and osteocalcin content of MSCs overexpressing Cadherin-11, as the early stage and later stage osteoblast marke respectively, were upregulated. Scanning electron microscopy and biomechanics analysis showed cells spreading and growing well in the scaffolds and the adhesive force of cell-cell increased. The results indicate that Cadherin-11 is essential up-regulator of osteoblastic differentiation of MSCs on the scaffold surfaces. Our study may provide a potential method to obtain the engineering seeded cells in the process of tissue construction.