Contact Guidance Based on the Nanostructures Fabricated by Nanoimprint Lithography

Contact Guidance is an important phenomenon in the bio field. However it is complex and time-consuming to fabricate the micro/nano morphology used to guide cell growth behavior. Novel method of employing nanoimprint lithography to mass-produce nanostructures was investigated. The nanoimprint stamp consisting of uniform nanogrooves was fabricated by holographic lithography and inductively coupled plasma etching. The stamp was used to nanoimprint many polyethylene terephthalate glycol substrates. The substrates were taken to cultivate vascular smooth muscle cells. The atomic force microscopy measurement shows the width of replicated grooves is 550 nm and the nanoimprint process is successful. The optical microscope characterization demonstrate that the patterned nanogrooves manufactured by nanoimprint have an obvious contact guidance for cell growth. These results have vital implications for bioinformatics, cell biology and biosensor research.