Engineering Anisotropic Muscle Tissue using Acoustic Cell Patterning

• Published in: Advanced materials (Weinheim) 2018-10, Vol.30 (43), p.e1802649-n/a
• Main Authors: Armstrong, James P. K., Puetzer, Jennifer L., Serio, Andrea, Guex, Anne Géraldine, Kapnisi, Michaella, Breant, Alexandre, Zong, Yifan, Assal, Valentine, Skaalure, Stacey C., King, Oisín, Murty, Tara, Meinert, Christoph, Franklin, Amanda C., Bassindale, Philip G., Nichols, Madeleine K., Terracciano, Cesare M., Hutmacher, Dietmar W., Drinkwater, Bruce W., Klein, Travis J., Perriman, Adam W., Stevens, Molly M.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: acoustic; Acoustics - instrumentation; Alignment; Animals; Anisotropy; Cell Line; Collagen; Communication; Communications; Fibers; Gelatin; Hydrogels; Materials science; Mice; Morphology; muscle; Muscle Fibers, Skeletal - cytology; Muscles; Myoblasts - cytology; Patterning; Standing waves; Tissue engineering; Tissue Engineering - instrumentation; Tissue Engineering - methods; Tissue Scaffolds; Ultrasonic Waves; ultrasound standing waves
• ISSN: 0935-9648; 1521-4095; 1521-4095
• DOI: 10.1002/adma.201802649

Tissue engineering has offered unique opportunities for disease modeling and regenerative medicine; however, the success of these strategies is dependent on faithful reproduction of native cellular organization. Here, it is reported that ultrasound standing waves can be used to organize myoblast populations in material systems for the engineering of aligned muscle tissue constructs. Patterned muscle engineered using type I collagen hydrogels exhibits significant anisotropy in tensile strength, and under mechanical constraint, produced microscale alignment on a cell and fiber level. Moreover, acoustic patterning of myoblasts in gelatin methacryloyl hydrogels significantly enhances myofibrillogenesis and promotes the formation of muscle fibers containing aligned bundles of myotubes, with a width of 120–150 µm and a spacing of 180–220 µm. The ability to remotely pattern fibers of aligned myotubes without any material cues or complex fabrication procedures represents a significant advance in the field of muscle tissue engineering. In general, these results are the first instance of engineered cell fibers formed from the differentiation of acoustically patterned cells. It is anticipated that this versatile methodology can be applied to many complex tissue morphologies, with broader relevance for spatially organized cell cultures, organoid development, and bioelectronics. Ultrasound standing waves are used to preorganize myoblast populations within collagen‐based hydrogels for the engineering of anisotropic skeletal muscle tissue. The acoustic cell patterning directs myoblast fusion and differentiation to generate oriented myotubes bundled into aligned muscle fibers; a physiologically relevant tissue morphology that yields anisotropic tensile mechanics and enhanced myofibrillogenesis.