3D Bioprintable Hydrogel with Tunable Stiffness for Exploring Cells Encapsulated in Matrices of Differing Stiffnesses.
ACS Appl Bio Mater
; 6(11): 4603-4612, 2023 11 20.
Article
in En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-37844275
ABSTRACT
In vitro cell models have undergone a shift from 2D models on glass slides to 3D models that better reflect the native 3D microenvironment. 3D bioprinting promises to progress the field by allowing the high-throughput production of reproducible cell-laden structures with high fidelity. The current stiffness range of printable matrices surrounding the cells that mimic the extracellular matrix environment remains limited. The work presented herein aims to expand the range of stiffnesses by utilizing a four-armed polyethylene glycol with maleimide-functionalized arms. The complementary cross-linkers comprised a matrix metalloprotease-degradable peptide and a four-armed thiolated polymer which were adjusted in ratio to tune the stiffness. The modularity of this system allows for a simple method of controlling stiffness and the addition of biological motifs. The application of this system in drop-on-demand printing is validated using MCF-7 cells, which were monitored for viability and proliferation. This study shows the potential of this system for the high-throughput investigation of the effects of stiffness and biological motif compositions in relation to cell behaviors.
Key words
Full text:
1
Collection:
01-internacional
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Hydrogels
/
Bioprinting
Limits:
Humans
Language:
En
Journal:
ACS Appl Bio Mater
Year:
2023
Document type:
Article
Affiliation country:
Australia