Effect of Topographic Cues on in Vitro Cultured Trabecular Meshwork Endothelial Cells

This paper reports the response of trabecular meshwork (TM) endothelial cells to various topographical cues at microscale and nanoscale. Cells are cultured on substrates with aligned and random features fabricated using electrospinning and microfabrication. The expression of myocilin, a characteristic protein of TM cells, is examined. The results show that all the topographic surfaces up-regulate myocilin than the planar surface. At microscale, the myocilin expression of cells on random features are significantly greater than those on linearly aligned features. This trend diminishes when the feature size decreases to the nanoscale. It is also found that the microstructured nanofibrous matrix combining the topographic characteristics of both aligned and random features not only exhibits significantly up-regulated myocilin, but also demonstrates cell alignment. The result indicates that topographic cue is a potent regulator of TM function. Its effect on the outflow resistance can be used to design new therapeutics for regulation of intraocular pressure.