Chitosan - alginate multilayered films with gradients of physical cues

Abstract

In general cell types are sensitive to mechanical stimulus of the surrounding environment which affects several cell properties. Thus, the development of biocompatible coatings with tuned mechanical properties are a current challenge, since gradients of physical signals are often applied in cellular processes to reconstruct the complex anisotropic environment presented by extracellular matrix (ECM) (1,2). Layer-by-layer (LbL) appears as a powerful tool since it allows the development of biomimetic multilayer films with well–controlled structures at both the nano and micro-scales (2). This study aimed to develop chitosan (CHIT) and alginate (ALG) polyelectrolyte multilayers with gradients of physical cues generated by changing the reaction time of genipin crosslinking as a function of controlled distance.