Source: School of Physics and Engineering
Written by: School of Physics and Engineering
Edited by: Wang Dongmei

Controlling the spatial arrangement of distinct cells into well-defined patterns is of significant importance for basic studies of cell–cell interaction and signal transduction. Until now, different methods for cell patterning have been reported by scientists from MIT, Harvard University, Cornell University, Tokyo University, etc. However, the reported methods require elaborately fabricated substrates or electrodes to predetermine the locations of cell patterns, which are complicated and time-consuming.

Recently, Prof. Baojun Li and his Ph.D candidates Mr. Hongbao Xin and Mr. Yuchao Li, from School of Physics and Engineering, Sun Yat-sen University, invented a simple optical method for patterning of different types of cells via direct cell–cell contact at single-cell patterning precision and control. They designed and fabricated a tapered optical fiber probe for cell patterning. With a laser beam at a wavelength of 980 nm, which exhibits extremely low damage to cells, launched into the fiber probe, different randomly suspended cells were trapped and orderly patterned into periodic cell structure by the exerted optical force from the fiber probe. Using this simple method, they patterned bacteria, fungal cells, and mammalian/human cells such as human leukemia K562 cells. Prof. Li and his students say, this provides a new approach for cell patterning with controllable cell locations at single-cell control, and provides possibilities for biological discoveries via direct cell–cell contact between different living cells and real-time signal sensing and detection.

This work was published in Advanced Functional Materials (Vol. 25, pp. 2816, 2015) as an Inside Front Cover paper. This is the third time in recent years that Prof. Baojun Li and his graduate students’ research works have been selected as cover picture in international scientific journals. The former two are Cover for Nanotechnology (2011) and Inside Front Cover for Laser & Photonics Reviews (2013).