Development of accessible platforms to promote myofibroblast differentiation by playing on hydrogel scaffold composition.
Biomater Adv
; 155: 213674, 2023 Dec.
Article
en En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-37922662
ABSTRACT
Mechanomimetic materials are particularly attractive for modeling in vitro fibroblast to myofibroblast (Myof) transition, a key process in the physiological repair of damaged tissue, and recognized as the core cellular mechanism of pathological fibrosis in different organs. In vivo, mechanical stimuli from the extracellular matrix (ECM) are crucial, together with cell-cell contacts and the pro-fibrotic transforming growth factor (TGF)-ß1, in promoting fibroblast differentiation. Here, we explore the impact of hydrogels made by polyacrylamide with different composition on fibroblast behavior. By appropriate modulation of the hydrogel composition (e.g. adjusting the crosslinker content), we produce and fully characterize three kinds of scaffolds with different Young modulus (E). We observe that soft hydrogels (E < 1 kPa) induced fibroblast differentiation better than stiffer ones, also in the absence of TGF-ß1. This study provides a readily accessible biomaterial platform to promote Myof generation. The easy approach used and the commercial availability of the monomers make these hydrogels suitable to a wide range of biomedical applications combined with high reproducibility and simple preparation protocols.
Palabras clave
Texto completo:
1
Colección:
01-internacional
Base de datos:
MEDLINE
Asunto principal:
Hidrogeles
/
Miofibroblastos
Límite:
Humans
Idioma:
En
Revista:
Biomater Adv
Año:
2023
Tipo del documento:
Article
País de afiliación:
Italia