Abstract
We prepared a novel rubbed fluorinated polyimide membrane using a rubbing machine with a rubbing cloth and
determined the surface properties of the rubbed membrane using an atomic force microscope and contact angle
measurements. In addition, we evaluated the cell adhesion behavior on the rubbed polyimide membrane using a
phase contrast microscope. Interestingly, a rubbed polyimide surface having a micrometer-scale grooved pattern
was prepared by the rubbing method, and the morphologies of cells attached to the rubbed surface were threedimensional multicellular spheroids, while the cells on an unrubbed surface showed two-dimensional monolayers.
This initial study indicates that the rubbing method without any chemical modification is simple and can easily produce large surface areas, suggesting that the rubbing may become a novel cell culture method.
