1
|
Bracco Gartner TCL, Wang Y, Leiteris L, van Adrichem I, Marsman J, Goumans MJ, Bouten CVC, Sluijter JPG, den Toonder JMJ, Suyker WJL, Hjortnaes J. Cyclic strain has antifibrotic effects on the human cardiac fibroblast transcriptome in a human cardiac fibrosis-on-a-chip platform. J Mech Behav Biomed Mater 2023; 144:105980. [PMID: 37399762 DOI: 10.1016/j.jmbbm.2023.105980] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2023] [Revised: 06/14/2023] [Accepted: 06/16/2023] [Indexed: 07/05/2023]
Abstract
In cardiac fibrosis, in response to stress or injury, cardiac fibroblasts deposit excessive amounts of collagens which contribute to the development of heart failure. The biochemical stimuli in this process have been extensively studied, but the influence of cyclic deformation on the fibrogenic behavior of cardiac fibroblasts in the ever-beating heart is not fully understood. In fact, most investigated mechanotransduction pathways in cardiac fibroblasts seem to ultimately have profibrotic effects, which leaves an important question in cardiac fibrosis research unanswered: how do cardiac fibroblasts stay quiescent in the ever-beating human heart? In this study, we developed a human cardiac fibrosis-on-a-chip platform and utilized it to investigate if and how cyclic strain affects fibrogenic signaling. The pneumatically actuated platform can expose engineered tissues to controlled strain magnitudes of 0-25% - which covers the entire physiological and pathological strain range in the human heart - and to biochemical stimuli and enables high-throughput screening of multiple samples. Microtissues of human fetal cardiac fibroblasts (hfCF) embedded in gelatin methacryloyl (GelMA) were 3D-cultured on this platform and exposed to strain conditions which mimic the healthy human heart. The results provide evidence of an antifibrotic effect of the applied strain conditions on cardiac fibroblast behavior, emphasizing the influence of biomechanical stimuli on the fibrogenic process and giving a detailed overview of the mechanosensitive pathways and genes involved, which can be used in the development of novel therapies against cardiac fibrosis.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Tom C L Bracco Gartner
- Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, UMC Utrecht, Utrecht, the Netherlands; Regenerative Medicine Center Utrecht, Utrecht, the Netherlands; Experimental Cardiology Laboratory, Department of Cardiology, UMC Utrecht, Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Ye Wang
- Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, UMC Utrecht, Utrecht, the Netherlands; Department of Mechanical Engineering, Technical University Eindhoven, Eindhoven, the Netherlands; Institute for Complex Molecular Systems (ICMS), Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven, the Netherlands.
| | - Laurynas Leiteris
- Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, UMC Utrecht, Utrecht, the Netherlands; Regenerative Medicine Center Utrecht, Utrecht, the Netherlands; Experimental Cardiology Laboratory, Department of Cardiology, UMC Utrecht, Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Iris van Adrichem
- Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, UMC Utrecht, Utrecht, the Netherlands; Regenerative Medicine Center Utrecht, Utrecht, the Netherlands; Experimental Cardiology Laboratory, Department of Cardiology, UMC Utrecht, Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Judith Marsman
- Central Diagnostics Laboratory, UMC Utrecht, Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Marie José Goumans
- Department of Cell and Chemical Biology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, the Netherlands
| | - Carlijn V C Bouten
- Institute for Complex Molecular Systems (ICMS), Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven, the Netherlands; Department of Biomedical Engineering, Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven, the Netherlands
| | - Joost P G Sluijter
- Regenerative Medicine Center Utrecht, Utrecht, the Netherlands; Experimental Cardiology Laboratory, Department of Cardiology, UMC Utrecht, Utrecht, the Netherlands; Utrecht University, Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Jaap M J den Toonder
- Institute for Complex Molecular Systems (ICMS), Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven, the Netherlands; Department of Biomedical Engineering, Eindhoven University of Technology, Eindhoven, the Netherlands
| | - Willem J L Suyker
- Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, UMC Utrecht, Utrecht, the Netherlands; Regenerative Medicine Center Utrecht, Utrecht, the Netherlands; Utrecht University, Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Jesper Hjortnaes
- Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, UMC Utrecht, Utrecht, the Netherlands; Regenerative Medicine Center Utrecht, Utrecht, the Netherlands; Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, the Netherlands.
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Coeyman SJ, Zhang Y, Baicu CF, Zile MR, Bradshaw AD, Richardson WJ. In vitro bioreactor for mechanical control and characterization of tissue constructs. J Biomech 2023; 147:111458. [PMID: 36682211 PMCID: PMC9946176 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbiomech.2023.111458] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/26/2022] [Revised: 11/14/2022] [Accepted: 01/13/2023] [Indexed: 01/19/2023]
Abstract
Cardiac fibrosis is a key contributor to the onset and progression of heart failure and occurs from extracellular matrix accumulation via activated cardiac fibroblasts. Cardiac fibroblasts activate in response to mechanical stress and have been studied in the past by applying forces and deformations to three-dimensional, cell-seeded gels and tissue constructs in vitro. Unfortunately, previous stretching platforms have traditionally not enabled mechanical property assessment to be performed with an efficient throughput, thereby limiting the full potential of in vitro mechanobiology studies. We have developed a novel in vitro platform to study cell-populated tissue constructs under dynamic mechanical stimulation while also performing repeatable, non-destructive stress-strain tests in living constructs. Additionally, this platform can perform these tests across all constructs in a multi-well plate simultaneously, providing exciting potential for direct, functional readouts in future screening applications. In our pilot application, we showed that cyclically stretching cell-populated tissue constructs composed of murine cardiac fibroblasts within a 3D fibrin matrix leads to collagen accumulation and increased tissue stiffness over a three-day time course. Results of this study validate our platform's ability to apply mechanical loads to tissues while performing live mechanical analyses to observe cell-mediated tissue remodeling.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - Yuhua Zhang
- Gazes Cardiac Research Institute, Division of Cardiology, Department of Medicine, Medical University of South Carolina
| | - Catalin F. Baicu
- Gazes Cardiac Research Institute, Division of Cardiology, Department of Medicine, Medical University of South Carolina,,Ralph H. Johnson Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Charleston, SC, USA
| | - Michael R. Zile
- Gazes Cardiac Research Institute, Division of Cardiology, Department of Medicine, Medical University of South Carolina,,Ralph H. Johnson Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Charleston, SC, USA
| | - Amy D. Bradshaw
- Gazes Cardiac Research Institute, Division of Cardiology, Department of Medicine, Medical University of South Carolina,,Ralph H. Johnson Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Charleston, SC, USA
| | | |
Collapse
|
3
|
Rogers JD, Richardson WJ. Fibroblast mechanotransduction network predicts targets for mechano-adaptive infarct therapies. eLife 2022; 11:62856. [PMID: 35138248 PMCID: PMC8849334 DOI: 10.7554/elife.62856] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/06/2020] [Accepted: 02/08/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Regional control of fibrosis after myocardial infarction is critical for maintaining structural integrity in the infarct while preventing collagen accumulation in non-infarcted areas. Cardiac fibroblasts modulate matrix turnover in response to biochemical and biomechanical cues, but the complex interactions between signaling pathways confound efforts to develop therapies for regional scar formation. We employed a logic-based ordinary differential equation model of fibroblast mechano-chemo signal transduction to predict matrix protein expression in response to canonical biochemical stimuli and mechanical tension. Functional analysis of mechano-chemo interactions showed extensive pathway crosstalk with tension amplifying, dampening, or reversing responses to biochemical stimuli. Comprehensive drug target screens identified 13 mechano-adaptive therapies that promote matrix accumulation in regions where it is needed and reduce matrix levels in regions where it is not needed. Our predictions suggest that mechano-chemo interactions likely mediate cell behavior across many tissues and demonstrate the utility of multi-pathway signaling networks in discovering therapies for context-specific disease states.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jesse D Rogers
- Department of Bioengineering, Clemson University, Clemson, United States
| | | |
Collapse
|