Photoresponsive azobenzene-based materials for smart cell culture applications

The work described in this thesis intends to exploit the photomechanical properties of azobenzene-based materials for the realization of functional photoresponsive cell culture platforms. Up to date, a big variety of photolithographic techniques has been successfully adopted for azopolymer photopatterning and even the possibility of a dynamic modulation of the topographical features of 2D cell culture substrates appeared to be feasible using these materials. In fact, a great biological interest resides in the dynamic modulation of the cell-material crosstalk, in order to recapitulate in vitro the fast remodeling of the natural extracellular microenvironment, in terms of biochemical, topographical and mechanical cues. In this thesis, light-induced topographical and structural modifications of different azobenzene-based materials have been used in many biological applications, either at a single-cell level, or in multicellular systems. In particular, light-based techniques already used for single-cell investigations have been implemented to study more complex biological processes, which involve the cell-cell interactions in their final biological response. At the same time, the realization of novel 3D photoresponsive platforms for smart cell culture has been introduced. Findings discussed in this thesis add a valuable contribution to the field of azobenzene-based matters as novel dynamic cell-instructive materials.