Synthetic polymers as cell surface modification materials have attracted significant research and development efforts due to their macromolecular nature that enables improved mechanical property, higher density and diversity of functional groups, and structures more closely resembling the natural protein receptors. However, the majority of the existing synthetic polymer cell surface engineering approaches have been based on the conjugation of pre-made synthetic polymers to the cell surface (the “graft-to” strategy). While the graft-to approaches are relatively straightforward to execute, the lacks of efficiency in polymer conjugation to the cell surface and the ability to spatially and temporally control the reaction limit the density and functionality of the graft-to polymers on cell surface. Herein, we report a light-mediated controlled radical polymerization approach that directly initiate polymer growth on the cell surface. Such a ”graft-from” approach still maintains high cell viability while generating a dense polymer coating with various functional side chains on the cell surface. Regulated by light, the polymer growth is spatially and temporally controlled, resulting in a patterned cell surface with the light-directed distribution of the grafted functional synthetic polymers. This technique can provide a powerful tool for potential applications such as programmable cell-cell interaction and bottom-up three-dimensional tissue construction.

Development of a light-mediated, cytocompatible controlled radical polymerization technique for cell surface engineering applications

251st National Meeting (2016)

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