Table 1.

Summary of strategies for controlling cell adhesion reviewed in this article.

Phototunable Property	Material	Phototriggered effect	Observed Properties and Effects	Ref
Stiffness	Thiolated HA polymers	Photocrosslinking and photodegradation	Photoinduced healing, patterned stiffness, and control of hMSCs adhesion	[57]
Wettability	SP based acrylic nanofibers	Photoisomerization	Dynamic control of cell adhesion and detachment	[58]
Wettability	Amphiphilic diblock copolymer with SP moieties in the hydrophobic block	Photoisomerization	Opposite polarity changes to the expected for photoisomerization of SP, switchable cell-repellent cell-adhesive surface	[59]
Ligand presentation	Sugar-modified azobenzene derivatives	Photoisomerization	Switchable and selective protein/cell adhesion	[60]
Wettability	Copolymer of SP derivatives and photoirresponsive molecule. Molecular recognition system	Photoisomerization	Amplified wettability transition, reversible capture and release of targeted cells	[61]
Stiffness and ligand presentation	O-nitrobenzylphosphate ester photoprotected nucleic acid-based polyacrylamide hydrogel	Photocleavage	Patterned and selective HeLa cell adhesion using specific aptamers	[63]
Wettability	Core-sheath fiber scaffold, the sheath being a SP containing copolymer	Photoisomerization	3D scaffold with controllable cell adhesion	[66]
Ligand presentation	Hydrogel microspheres with β-CD moieties and RGD-functionalized azobenzene	Photoisomerization	3D scaffold with controllable cell detachment	[67]
Ligand presentation	β-sheet forming peptide connected to RGD motif using a nitrobenzil linker	Photocleavage	Gradient of RGD on the fibrils and gradient of cell adhesion	[71]
Electrical stimulation	P3HT micropillars	Photovoltaic	Alignment and length increase of neurons axons	[64]
Ligand presentation	PGG connected to an oleyl group by a photocleavable linker	Photocleavage	Patterned nonadherent cell trapping and controllable release	[75]
Ligand presentation	SP-conjugated PEG – lipids	Photoisomerization	Spatially, switchable non-adherent and adherent cells immobilization	[65]
Ligand presentation	Photocleavable RGD-PEG conjugate surface	Photocleavage	Patterning of cell adhesive and non-adhesive regions and further release	[76]
Substrate topography	Vertical micropillars of pDR1m	Photoisomerization and mass migration	Pillar to ellipsoidal bar shape transition and changes in cell actin dynamics	[78]
Substrate topography	pDR1m substrate	Photoisomerization and mass migration	Generation of dynamic concentric rings patterns led to changes in fibroblasts’ shape	[79]