Direct measurement of forces between cell-coating polymers and chiral crystal surfaces: the enantioselectivity of hyaluronan

The interactions of hyaluronan (HA), a high-molecular-weight linear polysaccharide present in many pericellular coatings, with different facets of chiral calcium tartrate (CT) crystal surfaces are investigated using a molecular force probe. Forces between {011} and {110} facets of (R, R) and (S, S) CT crystals and a HA-bearing surface have been measured in saturated CT solutions. It has been observed that hyaluronan binds most strongly to the {011} facet of the (R, R) crystal, compared with the other facets examined, which is consistent with earlier observations of the adhesion of HA-coated cells to chiral CT crystals. The variation of binding strength among the facets studied is tentatively attributed to the surface structure difference between the {011} and {110} facets as well as to the preferential matching of the local hyaluronan H-bond network to the-OH groups on the {011} facet of the (R, R) enantiomer.