Photopatterned antibodies for selective cell attachment.

We present a phototriggerable system that allows for the spatiotemporal controlled attachment of selected cell types to a biomaterial using immobilized antibodies that specifically target individual cell phenotypes. o-Nitrobenzyl caged biotin was used to functionalize chitosan membranes and mediate site-specific coupling of streptavidin and biotinylated antibodies after light activation. The ability of this system to capture and immobilize specific cells on a surface was tested using endothelial-specific biotinylated antibodies and nonspecific ones as controls. Homogeneous patterned monolayers of human umbilical vein endothelial cells were obtained on CD31-functionalized surfaces. This is a simple and generic approach that is applicable to other ligands, materials, and cell types and shows the flexibility of caged ligands to trigger and control the interaction between cells and biomaterials.