Metabolically Stable Cellular Adhesion to Inert Surfaces

The structure of D‐amino acid hexapeptides that promote cellular adhesion was determined by screening D‐amino acid hexapeptide libraries synthesized on otherwise inert beaded PEGA resin. These new adhesion molecules provide a completely stable cellular environment and facilitate the maintenance of a monolayer of cells on beads for extended periods. The presence of the peptides promotes spreading of the cells on the bead surface. Not surprisingly, the molecules contained a significant number of arginines and/or lysines. However, the exact structure of each peptide is quite important for the degree of adhesion observed, and a motif with three or four basic amino acids spaced within amino acids of intermediate polarity clearly prevailed, for example, k‐l/r‐h‐r‐i/v‐r‐a; this maintains a polar/hydrophobic balance. Novel adhesion peptides for the growth of cell monolayers on inert surfaces were identified by screening D‐amino acid split‐mix combinatorial libraries. Peptide adhesion was superior to that of poly D‐lysine and allowed a monolayer of nonadhesive HEK293 cells to be established on the surface of PEG‐based polymer beads for on‐bead cellular screening.