Abstract
Understanding macrophage phenotype regulation by mechanical stimuli is a promising way to elucidate the body's inflammatory response and design new therapies. However, creating dynamic interfaces that allow precise, real-time, and reversible control over mechanical cues remains a challenge. In this study, we report the immunomodulatory effects of dynamic liquid crystal (LC) polymer films on in vitro macrophage responses. By utilizing reversible light-induced LC surface topographies, we generate dynamic mechanical stimuli on cells during topography formation and removal, enabling on-demand and reversible reprogramming of cell behavior. Our findings reveal a strong topographical shape-dependent cell response by examining the effects of flat, pillared, and grooved LC films on THP-1-derived macrophages. A strong increase in both pro- and anti-inflammatory markers is observed on grooves, while pillars maintain the anti-inflammatory profile without broad activation. Macrophages on LC film-generated topographies furthermore present distinct cytokine expression profiles. Notably, light-induced grooves triggered a stronger pro-remodeling cellular response, while pillars appeared to exert an inhibitory effect on macrophage activation. The dynamic topographies remarkably induced distinct changes in the macrophage membrane morphology, triggering migration-associated blebbing of the cell membrane in all cases except for grooves that promoted an increased degree of lamellipodia and filopodia formation. Overall, these results demonstrate that light-responsive LC surfaces provide a controllable platform for topography-dependent and adaptive immune modulation, opening opportunities for rational design of immunoregulatory scaffolds that exploit macrophage plasticity for regenerative medicine.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Article number | e00657 |
| Number of pages | 13 |
| Journal | Macromolecular Bioscience |
| Volume | 26 |
| Issue number | 3 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - Mar 2026 |
Bibliographical note
Publisher Copyright:© 2026 The Author(s). Macromolecular Bioscience published by Wiley-VCH GmbH.
Funding
The authors would like to thank Thom Alofs, Emy Curvers, Nicholas Kurniawan, Anthal Smits, Jan de Boer, SFD, and BDL members for their valuable suggestions and discussions. The authors acknowledge the support of the ICMS immunoengineering program, the Dutch Ministry of Education, Culture, and Science (Gravitation Program 024.005.020 – Interactive Polymer Materials IPM), the Institute of Complex Molecular Systems (ICMS), the Eindhoven Artificial Intelligence Institute (EAISI), and the TU/e. The authors would also like to acknowledge ICMS Animation Studio for the 3D illustrations of cells on the LC films. Microscopy was performed at the LCTE Microscopy Facility, TU/e. Scanning electron microscopy was performed at the Multi‐Scale Laboratory, Mechanics of Materials group, TU/e. The authors would like to thank Thom Alofs, Emy Curvers, Nicholas Kurniawan, Anthal Smits, Jan de Boer, SFD, and BDL members for their valuable suggestions and discussions. The authors acknowledge the support of the ICMS immunoengineering program, the Dutch Ministry of Education, Culture, and Science (Gravitation Program 024.005.020 – Interactive Polymer Materials IPM), the Institute of Complex Molecular Systems (ICMS), the Eindhoven Artificial Intelligence Institute (EAISI), and the TU/e. The authors would also like to acknowledge ICMS Animation Studio for the 3D illustrations of cells on the LC films. Microscopy was performed at the LCTE Microscopy Facility, TU/e. Scanning electron microscopy was performed at the Multi-Scale Laboratory, Mechanics of Materials group, TU/e.
Keywords
- dynamic topographies
- immunomodulation
- lamellipodia
- liquid crystal polymers
- macrophage
- materiobiology
- mechanobiology
- phenotype modulation
- photo-responsive materials
- Cell Movement/drug effects
- Humans
- THP-1 Cells
- Macrophages/immunology
- Liquid Crystals/chemistry
- Light
- Surface Properties
- Cytokines/metabolism
- Macrophage Activation/drug effects
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