Multivalent Clustering of Adhesion Ligands in Nanofiber-Nanoparticle Composites

Abstract

Because the positioning and clustering of biomolecules within the extracellular matrix dictates cell behaviors, the engineering of biomaterials incorporating bioactive epitopes with spatial organization tunable at the nanoscale is of primary importance. Here we used a highly modular composite approach combining peptide amphiphile (PA) nanofibers and silica nanoparticles, which are both easily functionalized with one or several bioactive signals. We show that the surface of silica nanoparticles allows the clustering of RGDS bioactive signals leading to ASSOCIATED CONTENT Supporting Information. Characterization of the synthesized peptides; Characterization of the synthesized PAs; SiNPs characterization; Synthesis and characterization of peptide-conjugated SiNPs; Quantification of surface functionalization -Copper-free Click Chemistry Cy3-Azide; Characterization of the self-assembly of the different PA mixtures by TEM; SEM characterization of the PA layers; 3T3 fibroblasts cultured on non-functionalized SiNP/PA composites; 3T3 fibroblasts cultured on PA-PHSRN and SiNP-PHSRN/PA scaffolds. AUTHOR INFORMATION Corresponding Author