MICRO FEATURES IN POLYMER PARTS CAN CONTROL THE BIOLOGICAL ACTIVITY IN CELLS
1/2/13 When it comes to bioengineering, microfeatures in polymer parts are used to control the biological activity of cells, letting us analyze their mechanical behavior with its surround environment. Cells can turn a mechanical cue into an internal chemical signal to initiate migration. We are able to provide cell therapy due to this control on the cells. Temperature plays a significant role in this process. An experiment was done at Lehigh University to test this using a silicone polymer wafer. The conclusion of this test showed that altering mold temperature and material can potentially achieve microstructures with increased aspect ratios. It found that pillar height increased as a function of mold temperature. They concluded that more testing needs to be done to determine optimum conditions to ensure filling and proper demolding of the polymer pillars. With this testing, it is believed that a variety of surface compliances can be created and used to direct biological cell activity.
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