Tracheal epithelium is organized along two axes: apicobasal, seen through apical ciliogenesis, and planar seen through organized ciliary beating, which moves mucus out of the airway. Diseased patients with affected ciliary motility have serious chronic respiratory infections. The standard method to construct epithelium is through air liquid interface culture which creates apicobasal polarization, not planar organization. Nanogrooved surface topography created in diffusible substrates for use in air liquid interface culture will induce planar organization of the cytoskeleton. We have created a nanogrooved gelatin device which allows basal nutrient diffusion. Multiple epithelial cells have been found to align in the direction of the nanogrooves in both sparse and confluent conditions. This device is also congruent with ALI culture as seen through formation of tight junctions and ciliogenesis. Thus, we have created nanogrooved surface topography in a diffusible substrate that induces planar alignment of epithelial cells and cytoskeleton.

Tracheal epithelium is organized along two axes: apicobasal, seen through apical ciliogenesis, and planar seen through organized ciliary beating, which moves mucus out of the airway. Diseased patients with affected ciliary motility have serious chronic respiratory infections. The standard method to construct epithelium is through air liquid interface culture which creates apicobasal polarization, not planar organization. Nanogrooved surface topography created in diffusible substrates for use in air liquid interface culture will induce planar organization of the cytoskeleton. We have created a nanogrooved gelatin device which allows basal nutrient diffusion. Multiple epithelial cells have been found to align in the direction of the nanogrooves in both sparse and confluent conditions. This device is also congruent with ALI culture as seen through formation of tight junctions and ciliogenesis. Thus, we have created nanogrooved surface topography in a diffusible substrate that induces planar alignment of epithelial cells and cytoskeleton.