Mark Keating

Combination scaffolds of salmon fibrin, hyaluronic acid, and laminin for human neural stem cell and vascular tissue engineering

Human neural stem/progenitor cells (hNSPCs) are good candidates for treating central nervous system (CNS) trauma since they secrete beneficial trophic factors and differentiate into mature CNS cells; however, many cells die after transplantation. This cell death can be ameliorated by inclusion of a biomaterial scaffold, making identification of optimal scaffolds for hNSPCs a critical research focus. We investigated the properties of fibrin-based scaffolds and their effects on hNSPCs and found that fibrin generated from salmon fibrinogen and thrombin stimulates greater hNSPC proliferation than mammalian fibrin. Fibrin scaffolds degrade over the course of a few days in vivo, so we sought to develop a novel scaffold that would retain the beneficial properties of fibrin but degrade more slowly to provide longer support for hNSPCs. We found combination scaffolds of salmon fibrin with interpenetrating networks (IPNs) of hyaluronic acid (HA) with and without laminin polymerize more effectively than fibrin alone and generate compliant hydrogels matching the physical properties of brain tissue. Furthermore, combination scaffolds support hNSPC proliferation and differentiation while significantly attenuating the cell-mediated degradation seen with fibrin alone. HNSPCs express two fibrinogen-binding integrins, αVβ1 and α5β1, and several laminin binding integrins (α7β1, α6β1, α3β1) that can mediate interaction with the scaffold. Lastly, to test the ability of scaffolds to support vascularization, we analyzed human cord blood-derived endothelial cells alone and in co-culture with hNSPCs and found enhanced vessel formation and complexity in co-cultures within combination scaffolds. Overall, combination scaffolds of fibrin, HA, and laminin are excellent biomaterials for hNSPCs.

Three-Dimensional Adult Cardiac Extracellular Matrix Promotes Maturation of Human Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Cardiomyocytes

Pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes (CMs) have great potential in the development of new therapies for cardiovascular disease. In particular, human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) may prove especially advantageous due to their pluripotency, their self-renewal potential, and their ability to create patient-specific cell lines. Unfortunately, pluripotent stem cell-derived CMs are immature, with characteristics more closely resembling fetal CMs than adult CMs, and this immaturity has limited their use in drug screening and cell-based therapies. Extracellular matrix (ECM) influences cellular behavior and maturation, as does the geometry of the environment-two-dimensional (2D) versus three-dimensional (3D). We therefore tested the hypothesis that native cardiac ECM and 3D cultures might enhance the maturation of iPSC-derived CMs in vitro. We demonstrate that maturation of iPSC-derived CMs was enhanced when cells were seeded into a 3D cardiac ECM scaffold, compared with 2D culture. 3D cardiac ECM promoted increased expression of calcium-handling genes, Junctin, CaV1.2, NCX1, HCN4, SERCA2a, Triadin, and CASQ2. Consistent with this, we find that iPSC-derived CMs in 3D adult cardiac ECM show increased calcium signaling (amplitude) and kinetics (maximum upstroke and downstroke) compared with cells in 2D. Cells in 3D culture were also more responsive to caffeine, likely reflecting an increased availability of calcium in the sarcoplasmic reticulum. Taken together, these studies provide novel strategies for maturing iPSC-derived CMs that may have applications in drug screening and transplantation therapies to treat heart disease.

Novel insights from 3D models: the pivotal role of physical symmetry in epithelial organization.

3D tissue culture models are utilized to study breast cancer and other pathologies because they better capture the complexity of in vivo tissue architecture compared to 2D models. However, to mimic the in vivo environment, the mechanics and geometry of the ECM must also be considered. Here, we studied the mechanical environment created in two 3D models, the overlay protocol (OP) and embedded protocol (EP). Mammary epithelial acini features were compared using OP or EP under conditions known to alter acinus organization, i.e. collagen crosslinking and/or ErbB2 receptor activation. Finite element analysis and active microrheology demonstrated that OP creates a physically asymmetric environment with non-uniform mechanical stresses in radial and circumferential directions. Further contrasting with EP, acini in OP displayed cooperation between ErbB2 signalling and matrix crosslinking. These differences in acini phenotype observed between OP and EP highlight the functional impact of physical symmetry in 3D tissue culture models.

Vascularization and innervation of slits within polydimethylsiloxane sheets in the subcutaneous space of athymic nude mice

Success of cell therapy in avascular sites will depend on providing sufficient blood supply to transplanted tissues. A popular strategy of providing blood supply is to embed cells within a functionalized hydrogel implanted within the host to stimulate neovascularization. However, hydrogel systems are not always amenable for removal post-transplantation; thus, it may be advantageous to implant a device that contains cells while also providing access to the circulation so retrieval is possible. Here we investigate one instance of providing access to a vessel network, a thin sheet with through-cut slits, and determine if it can be vascularized from autologous materials. We compared the effect of slit width on vascularization of a thin sheet following subcutaneous implantation into an animal model. Polydimethylsiloxane sheets with varying slit widths (approximately 150, 300, 500, or 1500 µm) were fabricated from three-dimensional printed molds. Subcutaneous implantation of sheets in immunodeficient mice revealed that smaller slit widths have evidence of angiogenesis and new tissue growth, while larger slit widths contain native mature tissue squeezing into the space. Our results show that engineered slit sheets may provide a simple approach to cell transplantation by providing a prevascularized and innervated environment.

Sprouting angiogenesis induces significant mechanical heterogeneities and ECM stiffening across length scales in fibrin hydrogels

Matrix stiffness is a well-established instructive cue in two-dimensional cell cultures. Its roles in morphogenesis in 3-dimensional (3D) cultures, and the converse effects of cells on the mechanics of their surrounding microenvironment, have been more elusive given the absence of suitable methods to quantify stiffness on a length-scale relevant for individual cell-extracellular matrix (ECM) interactions. In this study, we applied traditional bulk rheology and laser tweezers-based active microrheology to probe mechanics across length scales during the complex multicellular process of capillary morphogenesis in 3D, and further characterized the relative contributions of neovessels and supportive stromal cells to dynamic changes in stiffness over time. Our data show local ECM stiffness was highly heterogeneous around sprouting capillaries, and the variation progressively increased with time. Both endothelial cells and stromal support cells progressively stiffened the ECM, with the changes in bulk properties dominated by the latter. Interestingly, regions with high micro-stiffness did not necessarily correlate with remodeled regions of high ECM density as shown by confocal reflectance microscopy. Collectively, these findings, especially the large spatiotemporal variations in local stiffness around cells during morphogenesis in soft 3D fibrin gels, underscore that characterizing ECM mechanics across length scales. provides an opportunity to attain a deeper mechanobiological understanding of the microenvironments roles in cell fate and tissue patterning.