Biotin–Avidin Based Universal Cell–Matrix Interaction for Promoting Three-Dimensional Cell Adhesion

To promote cell adhesion in three-dimensional (3D) extracellular matrix (ECM) is crucial for avoiding cell anoikis, which is one of the most important issues for fundamental cell biology. Herein, a biotin–avidin based universal cell–matrix interaction for different types of cells is developed in order to achieve the promoted adhesion in 3D ECM. For the purpose, biotinylated nanofibrous hydrogels are constructed by coassembling 1,4-benzyldicarboxamide (C2) based non-biotinylated and biotinylated supramolecular gelators. The used cells are modified by avidin (AV-cells) through biotinylating cells and then interacting with avidin. After in situ encapsulating AV-cells in the hydrogels, the adhered amount can be increased by tens of percent even with adding several percentages of the biotinylated C2 gelators in the coassembly due to the specific biotin–avidin interaction. Reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) confirms that AV-cells can proliferate without varying gene expression and denaturation. Compared with the interaction between RGD and cells, this avidin–biotin interaction should be much more universal and it is feasible to be employed to promote cell adhesion for most types of cells in 3D matrix.