Patterned artificial juxtacrine stimulation of cells by covalently immobilized insulin.

Insulin was immobilized on prescribed areas of poly(ethylene terephthalate) film by photolithography. Chinese hamster ovary cells overexpressing human insulin receptors were cultured on the pattern-immobilized film. Pattern-immobilized insulin did not enhance cell adhesion but transduced a signal to the cells through phosphorylation of tyrosine residues of signal proteins. In addition, only cells on immobilized insulin grew in medium containing no serum. The enhancement of cell growth was considered to be a consequence of signal transduction. This microprocessing technique is useful for investigating the effect of immobilized biosignal molecules and for constructing new tissue engineering materials.