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. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2015 Jul 7.
Published in final edited form as: Lab Chip. 2014 Mar 14;14(13):2191–2201. doi: 10.1039/c4lc00122b

Figure 4.

Figure 4

Adhesive fiber-like pattern dimensions and spacing influence cell shape. (A) Crack widths vary with applied strain (* p < 0.01 compared to all other conditions) while (B) crack spacing decreases with applied strain. These dimensions play a critical role in dictating cell morphology. (C) If the applied strain is low, the adhesive patterns are too narrow to support cell spreading, and a majority of NIH 3T3 cells retain a rounded morphology. (D) At increased strains, adhesive pattern width is sufficient to support spreading, and a majority of cells assume an elongated morphology that traverses the microgroove. (E) At still higher strains, crack density is increased and cells tend to span multiple adhesive lines. Filopodia are typically observed along adhesive lines as the cell spreads. (green = actin; blue = nucleus; white dotted lines = edges of the microgroove PDMS structures; scale bar = 15 μm).