A nanofiber matrix enhances the growth and survival of dopaminergic neurons in culture

The extracellular matrix is a network of connective tissues that bind cells together. It regulates the fate of cells by interacting with cell surface receptors. These interactions between the extracellular matrix and the cell surface receptors are thought to play important roles during the CNS development and tissue repair.; Devices that mimic extracellular matrix have been used in vitro in an attempt to study the role of extracellular matrix in outgrowth, differentiation, and migration of cells. The role of extracellular matrix in these cell behaviors have been investigated for cortical neurons and neural progenitor cells. However, the geometry of extracellular matrix on the growth and survival of dopaminergic (DA) neurons have not been investigated. We used a synthetic polyamide nanofiber matrix that mimics the three-dimensional structure of extracellular matrix and investigated its effect on the growth and survival of DA neurons.; Our results show that the three dimensional structure of nanofiber matrix is sufficient to enhance the growth and survival of DA neurons in culture. This is the first study suggesting that the structure of extracellular matrix may play a role in the growth and survival of neurons. Interestingly, we found that the addition of extracellular matrix molecules, such as fibronectin or laminin, and the adhesive substrate, poly-L-lysine, to the nanofiber matrix does not further enhance the growth and survival of DA neurons.; Further study is needed to address the exact mechanisms underlying this effect of nanofiber matrix on DA neurons. Possible mechanisms include enhanced attachment of neurons to the culture substratum and attachment of extracellular matrix molecules to the nanofiber matrix.; The significance of the findings from this study is that it suggest that the nanofiber matrix may by useful as a vehicle for neural transplantation. Several issue such as the poor survival rate and unwanted migration of transplanted cells are currently limiting the application of neural transplantation. Nanofiber matrix may be able to alleviate these issues by enhancing the growth and survival of transplanted neurons.