Heparin-mimicking polymers (HMPs) are artificially synthesized
alternatives to heparin with comparable regulatory effects on protein
adsorption and cell behavior. By introducing two major structural
elements of HMPs (sulfonate- and glyco-containing units) to different
areas of material surfaces, heterogeneous surfaces patterned with
different HMPs and homogeneous surfaces patterned with the same HMPs
can be obtained. In this work, heterogeneous HMP-patterned poly(dimethylsiloxane)
(PDMS) surfaces with sulfonate-containing polySS (pS) and glyco-containing
polyMAG (pM) distributed in circular patterns (with a diameter of
300 μm) were prepared (S–M and M–S). Specifically,
pS and pM were distributed inside and outside the circles on S–M,
respectively, and exchanged their distribution on M–S. Homogeneous
HMP-patterned silicone surfaces (SM–SM) where sulfonate- and
glyco-containing poly(SS-co-MAG) (pSM) were distributed
uniformly were prepared. Vascular cells showed interestingly different
behaviors between chemically homogeneous and heterogeneous surfaces.
They tended to grow in the sulfonate-modified area on S–M and
M–S and were distributed uniformly on SM–SM. Compared
with M–S, S–M showed a better promoting effect on the
growth of vascular cells. Among all the samples, SM–SM exhibited
the highest proliferation density and an optimum spreading state of
vascular cells, as well as the highest human umbilical vein endothelial
cell (HUVEC) viability (∼99%) and relatively low human umbilical
vein smooth muscle cell (HUVSMC) viability (∼72%). By heterogeneous
or homogeneous patterning with different structural elements of HMPs,
the modified silicone surfaces spatially guided vascular cell distribution
and functions. This strategy provides a new surface engineering approach
to the study of cell–HMP interactions.