The 13th Global Conference on
Materials Science and Engineering (CMSE 2024)

Abstract: Superhydrophobic materials have been drawing increasing attention in medical fields. Interfacial interactions between cells and surfaces correlate quite well with many important phenomena in biological systems and have been considered for developing of several biomaterials and applications. In this work, surfaces were modified with environmentally friendly superhydrophobic coatings and were used to test their applications. Superhydrophobicity controls the interactions of cells with the surfaces and facilitates the flow of blood or plasma without damaging blood cells in the design of blood-containing devices. Spheroids, 3D multicellular aggregates, have recently emerged as a model that mimics an in vivo environment with more representative cell-to-cell interactions and better intercellular communication. Nevertheless, cost-effective and lab-friendly fabrication and effective recovery are challenges that restrict the broad application of spheroids [1]. The proposed SHS were used for the 3D spheroid preparation from tumoral and non-tumoral cell lines [2]. The effectiveness of the spheroid recovery and the cell viability of the derived entities was demonstrated by 2D culture conditions. Using representative skin cell lines, improved adhesion and proliferation in the migrated cells were demonstrated, both advanced properties for regenerative applications [3]. From macrophage-derived spheroids, changes in polarization and activation of migrated cells suggested promising differentiated immune responses [4]. Insights into the interaction of SHS with bacteria demonstrated promising control on bacterial adhesion under biofilm conditions for which microorganisms adopt a multicellular behavior protecting them against drugs.

Keywords: Biocompatibility, cell-based therapies, medical devices, polarization, spheroids, superhydrophobicity, surfaces.

References:
[1] Ferrari, M.; Cirisano, F.; Morán, M.C. Front. Biosci. 2022, 27, 144.
[2] Ferrari, M.; Cirisano, F.; Morán, M.C. Molecules 2022, 27, 1247.
[3] Morán, M.C.; Cirisano, F.; Ferrari, M. Pharmaceutics 2023, 15, 2226.
[4] Morán, M.C.; Cirisano, F.; Ferrari, M. Pharmaceuticals 2024, 17, 1042.

Biography: Maria del Carmen Morán (BS-Chemistry-1996; MS-Chemistry-1997; PhD-Chemistry-2002 UB) is an Associate Professor at the Department of Biochemistry and Physiology, Faculty of Pharmacy and Food Science at the University of Barcelona (UB). She obtained her PhD investigating the enzymatic synthesis of biocompatible amino acid-based surfactants at the Department of Surfactant Technology-Spanish Council for Scientific Research (IIQAB-CSIC). By means of UE founding (Marie Curie-Research Training Network CIPSNAC and NEONUCLEI, among others), she was involved in the preparation and physicochemical characterization of DNA gel particles during her postdoctoral stage at the Department of Chemistry at the University of Coimbra-Portugal (2006-2010).
Through a Ramon y Cajal contract, she was incorporated at the UB (2010- ). Her scientific background is now being applied to more biologically oriented questions including the preparation of efficient therapeutic delivery systems and their in vitro characterization in bulk and surface conditions. M. C. Morán authored more than 100 works including peer-reviewed journal and book chapters, 150 communications in scientific meetings, and 7 patents.