Advances in microfabrication and nanofabrication are opening new opportunities to investigate complicated questions of cell biology in ways not before possible. In particular, the spatial regulation of cellular processes can be examined by engineering the chemical and physical environment to which the cell responds. Lithographic methods and selective chemical modification schemes can provide biocompatible surfaces that control cellular interactions on the micron and submicron scales on which cells are organized. Combined with fluorescence microscopy and other approaches of cell biology, a widely expanded toolbox is becoming available. This review illustrates the potential of these integrated engineering tools, with an emphasis on patterned surfaces, for investigating fundamental mechanisms of receptor-mediated signaling in cells. We highlight progress made with immune cells and in particular with the IgE receptor system, which has been valuable for developing technology to gain new information about spatial regulation in signaling events.

中文翻译：

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纳米生物技术和细胞生物学：研究受体介导的信号传导的微米和纳米加工表面。

微加工和纳米加工的进步为以前所未有的方式研究细胞生物学的复杂问题开辟了新的机会。特别是，细胞过程的空间调节可以通过设计细胞响应的化学和物理环境来检查。光刻方法和选择性化学改性方案可以提供生物相容性表面，控制细胞组织在微米和亚微米尺度上的细胞相互作用。结合荧光显微镜和其他细胞生物学方法，一个广泛扩展的工具箱正在变得可用。这篇综述说明了这些集成工程工具的潜力，重点是图案化表面，用于研究细胞中受体介导的信号传导的基本机制。