Obtention and characterization of bioengineered layers onto silica-based microstructures

In this communication, we present a simple protocol to fix biological species to silica-based surface: glass slides and silica beads. A monofunctional silane reagent 3-cyanopropyldimethylchlorosilane was used to modify the surface of silicon wafers and appeared to be able to strongly attach soluble antibodies through their glycosylated regions (OH groups) to solid supports. Such silane reagent was used without further derivatization. Antibodies, anchored in a following simple incubation step, were proved to be able to fix CD45 rat cells on floating silica hollow microbeads. The originality of this study is that this type of hollow, low-density silica microbeads has never been used before. Moreover, it could be used in ultrasound applications, thus a further destruction of cells selectively fixed on such support could occur, using cavitation phenomena. Such a study can serve as a model of microbiosystem involving cell manipulation. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science S.A. All rights reserved.