Directing Stem Cell Fate in 3D Through Cell Inert and Adhesive Diblock Copolymer Domains

Adhesions are important cell structures required to transduce a variety of chemical and mechanics signals from outside-in and vice versa, all of which regulate cell behaviors, including stem cell differentiation (1). Though most biomaterials are coated with an adhesive ligand to promote adhesion, they do not often have a uniform distribution that does not match the heterogeneously adhesive extracellular matrix (ECM) in vivo (2). We have previously shown that diblock copolymer (DBC) mixtures undergo interface-confined de-mixing to form nanodomins of one copolymer in another (3). Here we demonstrate how diblock copolymer mixtures can be made into foams with nanodomains to better recapitulate native ECM adhesion regions and influence cell adhesion.