Interfacing Silicon Nanowires with Mammalian Cells

摘要

We demonstrated that mammalian cells can be cultured on vertically aligned SiNW array substrates. In spite of the physical penetration of nanowires, the cells survived for up to a week. Observations of continued differentiation of mES cells on SiNW array substrates were comparable to those seen with cells grown on gelatin coated tissue grade plastic. Gene delivery using a SiNW array was demonstrated. Our results suggest that the nanowires can be potentially utilized as a powerful tool for studying intra- and intercellular biological processes.