PEG–Anthracene Hydrogels as an On‐Demand Stiffening Matrix To Study Mechanobiology

There is a growing interest in materials that can dynamically change their properties in the presence of cells to study mechanobiology. Herein, we exploit the 365 nm light mediated [4+4] photodimerization of anthracene groups to develop cytocompatible PEG‐based hydrogels with tailorable initial modu...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Angewandte Chemie 2019-07, Vol.131 (29), p.10017-10021
Main Authors: Günay, Kemal Arda, Ceccato, Tova L., Silver, Jason S., Bannister, Kendra L., Bednarski, Olivia J., Leinwand, Leslie A., Anseth, Kristi S.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Anthracene
Calcium
Calcium (intracellular)
Calcium signalling
Chemistry
Fibroblasts
Fibrosis
Heart
Hydrogele
Hydrogels
Intracellular signalling
Kinetics
Localization
Matrixmechanik
Mechanical properties
Mechanobiologie
NF-AT protein
Photochemie
Signaltransduktion
Stiffening
Stiffness
Substrates
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Summary:There is a growing interest in materials that can dynamically change their properties in the presence of cells to study mechanobiology. Herein, we exploit the 365 nm light mediated [4+4] photodimerization of anthracene groups to develop cytocompatible PEG‐based hydrogels with tailorable initial moduli that can be further stiffened. A hydrogel formulation that can stiffen from 10 to 50 kPa, corresponding to the stiffness of a healthy and fibrotic heart, respectively, was prepared. This system was used to monitor the stiffness‐dependent localization of NFAT, a downstream target of intracellular calcium signaling using a reporter in live cardiac fibroblasts (CFbs). NFAT translocates to the nucleus of CFbs on stiffening hydrogels within 6 h, whereas it remains cytoplasmic when the CFbs are cultured on either 10 or 50 kPa static hydrogels. This finding demonstrates how dynamic changes in the mechanical properties of a material can reveal the kinetics of mechanoresponsive cell signaling pathways that may otherwise be missed in cells cultured on static substrates. Materialien mit justierbaren Eigenschaften werden zur Untersuchung von Veränderungen im Zellverhalten als Reaktion auf ihre Mikroumgebung verwendet. Eine zytokompatible Strategie zur Versteifung von PEG‐basierten Hydrogelen basiert auf der Photodimerisierung von Anthracen. Durch die Verwendung dieser Hydrogele wurde festgestellt, dass NFAT, ein nachgeordnetes Ziel der Calcium‐Signalkaskade, in kardialen Fibroblasten auf Veränderungen des Hydrogelmoduls innerhalb von 80 min bis
ISSN:0044-8249
1521-3757
DOI:10.1002/ange.201901989