Gradient-free Directional Cell Migration in Continuous Microchannels

Directing cell movements within 3D channels is a key challenge in biomedical devices and tissue engineering. In two dimensions, closely spaced arrays of asymmetric teardrop islands can intermittently polarize cells and sustain their autonomous directional migration with no gradients. However, in 3D microchannels composed of linearly connected teardrop segments, negligibly low directional bias is observed. Rather than adopt teardrop shapes, cells evade morphological polarization by spreading across multiple teardrop segments, only partly filling each. We demonstrate here that cells can be forced to adopt the shape of individual segments by connecting the segments at an angle to minimize cell spreading across multiple segments. The resulting rhythmic polarization leads to significant directional bias for NIH3T3 fibroblasts, epithelial cells, and even cells whose intracellular signalling have been purposely altered to affect lamellipodia extension (Rac1) and cell polarity (Cdc42). This gradient-free approach to directing cell migration in 3D microchannels may find significant applications in tissue scaffolds and cell on a chip devices.