Fibroblast growth factor-2 (FGF-2) is a critical molecule for sustaining the pluripotency of human pluripotent stem (PS) cells. However, FGF-2 is extremely unstable and cannot be stored long periods at room temperature. Therefore, the following FGF-2-conjugated cell culture materials were developed to stabilize FGF-2: FGF-2-conjugated polyvinyl alcohol (PVAI-C-FGF) hydrogels and FGF-2-conjugated carboxymethyl cellulose-coated (CMC-C-FGF) dishes. Human induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells were proliferated on recombinant vitronectin (rVN)-coated PVAI-C-FGF hydrogels and CMC-C-FGF dishes in medium without FGF-2. Human iPS cells could not be cultivated on rVN-coated PVAI-C-FGF hydrogels for more than two passages but could proliferate on rVN-coated CMC-C-FGF dishes. These results indicated that the amount of immobilized FGF-2 and the base cell materials are important, including the amount of immobilized rVN and the conformation of FGF-2 on the surfaces. When human iPS cells were proliferated on rVN-coated CMC-C-FGF surfaces in medium containing no FGF-2 for 10 passages, their pluripotency and potential to differentiate into cells originating from three germ layers were maintained