On how cell shape determines bactericidal effects of nanopatterned surfaces
4 affiliations
- 1School of Mechanical Engineering
- 2Purdue University
- 3Department of Psychology
- 4University of California Los Angeles
Abstract
Nanopatterned surfaces inactivate bacteria by mechanically deforming adherent cells, yet design guidelines remain inconsistent and studies rarely isolate the role of cell shape. Here, we show how cell shape governs responses to nanopatterned surfaces. We develop a thermodynamic model coupling envelope stretching and bending with cell-surface adhesion to compare spherical and rod-shaped bacteria with identical cross-sections. We find that nanopatterning increases strain for both shapes, while cell shape changes how cells attain that strain. We show that spherical and rod-shaped cells adopt different adhesion geometries and energy balances even when they experience similar strains. Rod-shaped cells reach higher strains at lower nanopillar densities over much of the design space, while nanopillar radius and density tune cell shape-dependent strain differences. We identify nanopatterns that preferentially strain either shape or balance their responses using Pareto analysis. Together, our results establish cell shape as a key design consideration for tailoring bactericidal nanopatterned materials.
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BibTeX
@misc{eichermiller2026cell,
title = {{On how cell shape determines bactericidal effects of nanopatterned surfaces}},
author = {Amelia G Eicher-Miller and Mojtaba Zarei and Shree Shivani Pamula and Ashwin Ramachandran},
howpublished = {ChemRxiv},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.26434/chemrxiv.15009999/v1},
url = {https://chemrxiv.org/doi/full/10.26434/chemrxiv.15009999/v1},
note = {CC BY-NC},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - On how cell shape determines bactericidal effects of nanopatterned surfaces
AU - Amelia G Eicher-Miller
AU - Mojtaba Zarei
AU - Shree Shivani Pamula
AU - Ashwin Ramachandran
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/06
PB - ChemRxiv
DO - 10.26434/chemrxiv.15009999/v1
UR - https://chemrxiv.org/doi/full/10.26434/chemrxiv.15009999/v1
AB - Nanopatterned surfaces inactivate bacteria by mechanically deforming adherent cells, yet design guidelines remain inconsistent and studies rarely isolate the role of cell shape. Here, we show how cell shape governs responses to nanopatterned surfaces. We develop a thermodynamic model coupling envelope stretching and bending with cell-surface adhesion to compare spherical and rod-shaped bacteria with identical cross-sections. We find that nanopatterning increases strain for both shapes, while cell shape changes how cells attain that strain. We show that spherical and rod-shaped cells adopt different adhesion geometries and energy balances even when they experience similar strains. Rod-shaped cells reach higher strains at lower nanopillar densities over much of the design space, while nanopillar radius and density tune cell shape-dependent strain differences. We identify nanopatterns that preferentially strain either shape or balance their responses using Pareto analysis. Together, our results establish cell shape as a key design consideration for tailoring bactericidal nanopatterned materials.
ER -