Hydrogel Micropost Arrays with Single Post Tunability to Study Cell Volume and Mechanotransduction.

ABSTRACT: The extracellular matrix varies considerably in mechanical properties at the microscale. It remains unclear how cells respond to these properties, in part, due to lack of tools to create precisely defined microenvironments in a discrete manner. Here, freeform stereolithography is leveraged to control the placement and elastic modulus of individual hydrogel microposts that serve as discrete matrix signals to interface with cells. Mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) located in the interstitial spaces between microposts above a base layer are analyzed. Cell volume is higher when MSCs interact with more microposts. MSCs show higher strain energy when they interact simultaneously with 4-kPa and 20-kPa microposts than with mechanically homogeneous micropost arrays. MSCs are sensitive to pharmacolog

SUBMITTER: Devine D 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7704779 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature