Biodegradable LC Oligomers with Cranked Branching Points Form Highly Oriented Fibrous Scaffold for Cytoskeletal Orientation

Thermotropic liquid crystalline (LC) hyperbranch oligoesters (molecular weight of ca. 8 kDa) composed of rigid biodegradable segments, oligo{4-hydroxycinnamic acid (4HCA)}, plus a multifunctional biomolecule, cholic acid (CA), were prepared. Semiempirical calculations for the most stable conformation of the model compound CA derivatives with four arms of 4HCA tetramer showed that every arm can adopt an almost parallel orientation and that the CA unit can form a crankshaft architecture and function as a four-way junction of a branch point. Oligo(4HCA- co -CA)s successfully form molecularly oriented fibers with a high orientation degree by spinning viscous LC melts. Scanning electron microscopy demonstrated that mouse fibroblasts oriented uniaxially along the fiber longitudinal axis. Moreover, confocal fluorescence scanning microscopy showed that the RFP-stained cytoskeleton of these fibroblasts oriented highly.