Single-Chain Atomic Crystals as Extracellular Matrix-Mimicking Material with Exceptional Biocompatibility and Bioactivity

Abstract

In this study, Mo3Se3 - single-chain atomic crystals (SCACs) with atomically small chain diameters of ��0.6 nm, large surface areas, and mechanical flexibility were synthesized and investigated as an extracellular matrix (ECM)-mimicking scaffold material for tissue engineering applications. The proliferation of L-929 and MC3T3-E1 cell lines increased up to 268.4 �� 24.4% and 396.2 �� 8.1%, respectively, after 48 h of culturing with Mo3Se3 - SCACs. More importantly, this extremely high proliferation was observed when the cells were treated with 200 ��g mL-1 of Mo3Se3 - SCACs, which is above the cytotoxic concentration of most nanomaterials reported earlier. An ECM-mimicking scaffold film prepared by coating Mo3Se3 - SCACs on a glass substrate enabled the cells to adhere to the surface in a highly stretched manner at the initial stage of cell adhesion. Most cells cultured on the ECM-mimicking scaffold film remained alive; in contrast, a substantial number of cells cultured on glass substrates without the Mo3Se3 - SCAC coating did not survive. This work not only proves the exceptional biocompatible and bioactive characteristics of the Mo3Se3 - SCACs but also suggests that, as an ECM-mimicking scaffold material, Mo3Se3 - SCACs can overcome several critical limitations of most other nanomaterials. c. 2018 American Chemical Society