Guest-responsive, Non-proteolytic Harvest of a Cell-sheet using Controllable Host-guest Chemistry

A new non-proteolytic method to harvest a cell-sheet was demonstrated using controllable host-guest interactions which can be dissociated by treating a strong guest on demand. Fibroblast cells (NIH3T3) were grown to confluence on a 1,6-diammoniumhexane conjugated hyaluronic acid (DAH-HA) polymer which was anchored to a cucurbit[7]uril (CB[7]) surface using the host-guest interaction between DAH and CB[7]. Treating with a strong guest allowed the cultured cells to be detached from the surface as a free standing sheet. This approach demonstrated the great potential of controllable host-guest chemistry as a novel tool for non-proteolytic harvesting of cell-sheets useful for regenerative therapy.