Abstract: One aspect of the present invention relates to a method of coating a surface, comprising sequentially depositing on a surface, under pH-controlled conditions, alternating layers of polymers to provide a coated surface, wherein a first polymer is selected from the group consisting of pH dependent cationic polyelectrolytes and neutral polymers, and a second polymer is selected from the group consisting of anionic polyelectrolytes, thereby permitting or preventing cell adhesion to said coated surface. In certain embodiments, the aforementioned method provides a coated surface to which cell adhesion is permitted. In certain embodiments, the aforementioned method provides a coated surface to which cell adhesion is prevented. Another aspect of the present invention relates to a method of rendering a surface cytophilic, comprising the step of coating a surface with a polyelectrolyte multilayer film, which film swells to less than or equal to about 150% of its original thickness when exposed to an aqueous medium.