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Jiang W, Glaeser JD, Kaneda G, Sheyn J, Wechsler JT, Stephan S, Salehi K, Chan JL, Tawackoli W, Avalos P, Johnson C, Castaneda C, Kanim LEA, Tanasansomboon T, Burda JE, Shelest O, Yameen H, Perry TG, Kropf M, Cuellar JM, Seliktar D, Bae HW, Stone LS, Sheyn D. Intervertebral disc human nucleus pulposus cells associated with back pain trigger neurite outgrowth in vitro and pain behaviors in rats. Sci Transl Med 2023; 15:eadg7020. [PMID: 38055799 DOI: 10.1126/scitranslmed.adg7020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/10/2023] [Accepted: 10/06/2023] [Indexed: 12/08/2023]
Abstract
Low back pain (LBP) is often associated with the degeneration of human intervertebral discs (IVDs). However, the pain-inducing mechanism in degenerating discs remains to be elucidated. Here, we identified a subtype of locally residing human nucleus pulposus cells (NPCs), generated by certain conditions in degenerating discs, that was associated with the onset of discogenic back pain. Single-cell transcriptomic analysis of human tissues showed a strong correlation between a specific cell subtype and the pain condition associated with the human degenerated disc, suggesting that they are pain-triggering. The application of IVD degeneration-associated exogenous stimuli to healthy NPCs in vitro recreated a pain-associated phenotype. These stimulated NPCs activated functional human iPSC-derived sensory neuron responses in an in vitro organ-chip model. Injection of stimulated NPCs into the healthy rat IVD induced local inflammatory responses and increased cold sensitivity and mechanical hypersensitivity. Our findings reveal a previously uncharacterized pain-inducing mechanism mediated by NPCs in degenerating IVDs. These findings could aid in the development of NPC-targeted therapeutic strategies for the clinically unmet need to attenuate discogenic LBP.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wensen Jiang
- Orthopaedic Stem Cell Research Laboratory, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
- Board of Governors Regenerative Medicine Institute, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
| | - Juliane D Glaeser
- Orthopaedic Stem Cell Research Laboratory, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
- Board of Governors Regenerative Medicine Institute, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
| | - Giselle Kaneda
- Orthopaedic Stem Cell Research Laboratory, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
- Board of Governors Regenerative Medicine Institute, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
| | - Julia Sheyn
- Orthopaedic Stem Cell Research Laboratory, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
- Board of Governors Regenerative Medicine Institute, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
| | - Jacob T Wechsler
- Orthopaedic Stem Cell Research Laboratory, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
- Board of Governors Regenerative Medicine Institute, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
| | - Stephen Stephan
- Department of Orthopedics, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
| | - Khosrowdad Salehi
- Orthopaedic Stem Cell Research Laboratory, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
- Board of Governors Regenerative Medicine Institute, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
| | - Julie L Chan
- Orthopaedic Stem Cell Research Laboratory, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
- Department of Neurosurgery, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
| | - Wafa Tawackoli
- Orthopaedic Stem Cell Research Laboratory, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
- Board of Governors Regenerative Medicine Institute, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
- Department of Surgery, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
- Biomedical Imaging Research Institute, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
| | - Pablo Avalos
- Board of Governors Regenerative Medicine Institute, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
| | - Christopher Johnson
- Department of Orthopedics, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
| | - Chloe Castaneda
- Orthopaedic Stem Cell Research Laboratory, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
- Board of Governors Regenerative Medicine Institute, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
| | - Linda E A Kanim
- Orthopaedic Stem Cell Research Laboratory, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
| | - Teerachat Tanasansomboon
- Orthopaedic Stem Cell Research Laboratory, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
- Board of Governors Regenerative Medicine Institute, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
- Department of Orthopedics, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
- Center of Excellence in Biomechanics and Innovative Spine Surgery, Department of Orthopedics, Faculty of Medicine, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand
| | - Joshua E Burda
- Board of Governors Regenerative Medicine Institute, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
| | - Oksana Shelest
- Board of Governors Regenerative Medicine Institute, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
| | - Haneen Yameen
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Israeli Institute of Technology Technion, Haifa 3200003, Israel
| | - Tiffany G Perry
- Department of Neurosurgery, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
| | - Michael Kropf
- Department of Orthopedics, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
| | - Jason M Cuellar
- Department of Orthopedics, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
| | - Dror Seliktar
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Israeli Institute of Technology Technion, Haifa 3200003, Israel
| | - Hyun W Bae
- Department of Orthopedics, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
| | - Laura S Stone
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Israeli Institute of Technology Technion, Haifa 3200003, Israel
| | - Dmitriy Sheyn
- Orthopaedic Stem Cell Research Laboratory, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
- Board of Governors Regenerative Medicine Institute, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
- Department of Orthopedics, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
- Department of Surgery, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
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Buonvino S, Arciero I, Martinelli E, Seliktar D, Melino S. Modelling the disease: H 2S-sensitivity and drug-resistance of triple negative breast cancer cells can be modulated by embedding in isotropic micro-environment. Mater Today Bio 2023; 23:100862. [PMID: 38046276 PMCID: PMC10689286 DOI: 10.1016/j.mtbio.2023.100862] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/2023] [Revised: 09/26/2023] [Accepted: 11/09/2023] [Indexed: 12/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Three-dimensional (3D) cell culture systems provide more physiologically relevant information, representing more accurately the actual microenvironment where cells reside in tissues. However, the differences between the tissue culture plate (TCP) and 3D culture systems in terms of tumour cell growth, proliferation, migration, differentiation and response to the treatment have not been fully elucidated. Tumoroid microspheres containing the MDA-MB 231 breast cancer cell line were prepared using either tunable PEG-fibrinogen (PFs) or tunable PEG-silk fibroin (PSFs) hydrogels, respectively named MDAPFs and MDAPSFs. The cancer cells in the tumoroids showed changes both in globular morphology and at the protein expression level. A decrease of both Histone H3 acetylation and cyclin D1 expression in all 3D systems, compared to the 2D cell culture, was detected in parallel to changes of the matrix stiffness. The effects of a glutathionylated garlic extract (GSGa), a slow H2S-releasing donor, were investigated on both tumoroid systems. A pro-apoptotic effect of GSGa on tumour cell growth in 2D culture was observed as opposed to a pro-proliferative effect apparent in both MDAPFs and MDAPSFs. A dedicated ad hoc 3D cell migration chip was designed and optimized for studying tumour cell invasion in a gel-in-gel configuration. An anti-cell-invasion effect of the GSGa was observed in the 2D cell culture, whereas a pro-migratory effect in both MDAPFs and MDAPSFs was observed in the 3D cell migration chip assay. An increase of cyclin D1 expression after GSGa treatment was observed in agreement with an increase of the cell invasion index. Our results suggest that the "dimensionality" and the stiffness of the 3D cell culture milieu can change the response to both the gasotransmitter H2S and doxorubicin due to differences in both H2S diffusion and changes in protein expression. Moreover, we uncovered a direct relation between the cyclin D1 expression and the stiffness of the 3D cell culture milieu, suggesting the potential causal involvement of the cyclin D1 as a bio-marker for sensitivity of the tumour cells to their matrix stiffness. Therefore, our hydrogel-based tumoroids represent a valid tunable model for studying the physically induced transdifferentiation (PiT) of cancer cells and as a more reliable and predictive in vitro screening platform to investigate the effects of anti-tumour drugs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Silvia Buonvino
- Department of Chemical Sciences and Technologies, University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, via della Ricerca Scientifica, 00133, Rome, Italy
| | - Ilaria Arciero
- Department of Chemical Sciences and Technologies, University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, via della Ricerca Scientifica, 00133, Rome, Italy
| | - Eugenio Martinelli
- Department of Electronic Engineering, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
- Interdisciplinary Center for Advanced Studies on Lab-on -Chip and Organ-on-Chip Applications, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
| | - Dror Seliktar
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Technion Israel Institute of Technology, 3200003, Haifa, Israel
| | - Sonia Melino
- Department of Chemical Sciences and Technologies, University of Rome “Tor Vergata”, via della Ricerca Scientifica, 00133, Rome, Italy
- NAST Centre, University of Rome ‘Tor Vergata’, Rome, Italy
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Goldshmid R, Simaan-Yameen H, Ifergan L, Loebel C, Burdick JA, Seliktar D. Modulus-dependent effects on neurogenic, myogenic, and chondrogenic differentiation of human mesenchymal stem cells in three-dimensional hydrogel cultures. J Biomed Mater Res A 2023; 111:1441-1458. [PMID: 37066837 DOI: 10.1002/jbm.a.37545] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/21/2022] [Revised: 03/23/2023] [Accepted: 03/25/2023] [Indexed: 04/18/2023]
Abstract
Human mesenchymal stromal cells (hMSCs) are of significant interest as a renewable source of therapeutically useful cells. In tissue engineering, hMSCs are implanted within a scaffold to provide enhanced capacity for tissue repair. The present study evaluates how mechanical properties of that scaffold can alter the phenotype and genotype of the cells, with the aim of augmenting hMSC differentiation along the myogenic, neurogenic or chondrogenic linages. The hMSCs were grown three-dimensionally (3D) in a hydrogel comprised of poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG)-conjugated to fibrinogen. The hydrogel's shear storage modulus (G'), which was controlled by increasing the amount of PEG-diacrylate cross-linker in the matrix, was varied in the range of 100-2000 Pascal (Pa). The differentiation into each lineage was initiated by a defined culture medium, and the hMSCs grown in the different modulus hydrogels were characterized using gene and protein expression. Materials having lower storage moduli (G' = 100 Pa) exhibited more hMSCs differentiating to neurogenic lineages. Myogenesis was favored in materials having intermediate modulus values (G' = 500 Pa), whereas chondrogenesis was favored in materials with a higher modulus (G' = 1000 Pa). Enhancing the differentiation pathway of hMSCs in 3D hydrogel scaffolds using simple modifications to mechanical properties represents an important achievement toward the effective application of these cells in tissue engineering.
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Affiliation(s)
- Revital Goldshmid
- The Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
- The Interdisciplinary Program for Biotechnology, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Haneen Simaan-Yameen
- The Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
- The Interdisciplinary Program for Biotechnology, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Liaura Ifergan
- The Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Claudia Loebel
- Materials Science & Engineering Department, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
| | - Jason A Burdick
- BioFrontiers Institute and Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado, USA
| | - Dror Seliktar
- The Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
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4
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Reggio A, De Paolis F, Bousselmi S, Cicciarelli F, Bernardini S, Rainer A, Seliktar D, Testa S, Cirillo C, Grumati P, Cannata S, Fuoco C, Gargioli C. Development of a platform of 3D adipogenesis to model, at higher scale, the impact of LY2090314 compound on fibro/adipogenic progenitor adipogenic drift. Dis Model Mech 2023:314428. [PMID: 37272428 DOI: 10.1242/dmm.049915] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/11/2022] [Accepted: 05/25/2023] [Indexed: 06/06/2023] Open
Abstract
In human dystrophies, the progressive muscle wasting is exacerbated by ectopic deposition of fat and fibrous tissue originating from fibro/adipogenic progenitors (FAPs). In degenerating muscles, the ability of these cells to adjuvate a successful healing is attenuated and FAPs aberrantly expand and differentiate into adipocytes and fibroblasts. Thus, arresting the fibroadipogenic fate of FAPs, without affecting their physiological role, represents a valuable therapeutic strategy for patients affected by muscle diseases. Here, using a panel of adipose progenitor cells including human-derived FAPs coupled with pharmacological perturbations and proteome profiling, we report that LY2090314 interferes with a genuine adipogenic program acting as WNT surrogate for the stabilization of a competent b-catenin transcriptional complex. To predict the beneficial impact of LY2090314 in limiting ectopic deposition of fat in human muscles, we combined the Poly-Ethylene-Glycol-Fibrinogen biomimetic matrix with these progenitor cells to create a miniaturized 3D model of adipogenesis. Using this scalable system, we demonstrated that a two-digit nanomolar dose of this compound is effective to repress adipogenesis in a higher 3D scale, thus offering a concrete proof for the use of LY2090314 to limit FAP-derived fat infiltrates in dystrophic muscles.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alessio Reggio
- Department of Biology, University of Rome "Tor Vergata", Rome, 00133, Italy
| | - Francesca De Paolis
- Department of Biology, University of Rome "Tor Vergata", Rome, 00133, Italy
- PhD Program in Cellular and Molecular Biology, Department of Biology, University of Rome "Tor Vergata", 00133, Rome, Italy
| | - Salma Bousselmi
- Department of Biology, University of Rome "Tor Vergata", Rome, 00133, Italy
| | - Felice Cicciarelli
- Department of Biology, University of Rome "Tor Vergata", Rome, 00133, Italy
| | - Sergio Bernardini
- Department of Biology, University of Rome "Tor Vergata", Rome, 00133, Italy
| | - Alberto Rainer
- Department of Engineering, Università Campus Bio-Medico, Rome, 00128, Italy
- Institute of Nanotechnology (NANOTEC), National Research Council, Lecce, 73100, Italy
| | - Dror Seliktar
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Techion Institute, Haifa, Israel
| | - Stefano Testa
- Aix Marseille University, INSERM, Marseille Medical Genetics, MMG, Marseille, France
| | - Carmine Cirillo
- Telethon Institute of Genetics and Medicine (TIGEM), Pozzuoli (NA), Italy
| | - Paolo Grumati
- Telethon Institute of Genetics and Medicine (TIGEM), Pozzuoli (NA), Italy
- Department of Clinical Medicine and Surgery, Federico II University, Naples, Italy
| | - Stefano Cannata
- Department of Biology, University of Rome "Tor Vergata", Rome, 00133, Italy
| | - Claudia Fuoco
- Department of Biology, University of Rome "Tor Vergata", Rome, 00133, Italy
| | - Cesare Gargioli
- Department of Biology, University of Rome "Tor Vergata", Rome, 00133, Italy
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5
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Simaan-Yameen H, Bar-Am O, Saar G, Seliktar D. Methacrylated Fibrinogen Hydrogels for 3D Cell Culture and Delivery. Acta Biomater 2023; 164:94-110. [PMID: 37030621 DOI: 10.1016/j.actbio.2023.03.046] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/23/2022] [Revised: 03/28/2023] [Accepted: 03/31/2023] [Indexed: 04/08/2023]
Abstract
Methacrylation was performed on fibrinogen to design a new biomedical hydrogel for 3D cell culture or as a biodegradable delivery matrix for in vivo implantation. The methacrylation of denatured fibrinogen in solution was performed using methacrylic anhydride (MAA). The extent of fibrinogen methacrylation was quantified by proton NMR and controlled using stochiometric quantities of MAA during the reaction. The methacrylated fibrinogen (FibMA) hydrogels were formed by light-activated free-radical polymerization in the presence of macromolecular cross-linking polymers made from acrylated poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG). The biocompatibility and biodegradability of the FibMA hydrogels were characterized by in vitro assays and in vivo implantation experiments using quantitative magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the implant volume. The FibMA supported the growth and metabolic activity of human dermal fibroblasts in both 2D and 3D cultures. The methacrylation did not alter important biological attributes of the fibrinogen, including the ability to support cell adhesion and 3D cell culture, as well as to undergo proteolysis. Animal experiments confirmed the biodegradability of the FibMA for potential use as a scaffold in tissue engineering, as a bioink for 3D printing, or as a biodegradable matrix for in vivo sustained delivery of bioactive factors. STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE: : This paper describes methacrylated fibrinogen (FibMA) and the formation of a biomedical hydrogel from FibMA for cell culture and other biomedical applications. Inspired from methacrylated gelatin (GelMA), the FibMA is made from blood-derived fibrinogen which is more suitable for clinical use. Sharing similar properties to other hydrogels made from methacrylated proteins, the FibMA has yet to be reported in the literature. In this manuscript, we provide the methodology to produce the FibMA hydrogels, we document the mechanical versatility of this new biomaterial, and we show the biocompatibility using 3D cell culture studies and in vivo implantations.
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Fornetti E, De Paolis F, Fuoco C, Bernardini S, Giannitelli SM, Rainer A, Seliktar D, Magdinier F, Baldi J, Biagini R, Cannata S, Testa S, Gargioli C. A novel extrusion-based 3D bioprinting system for skeletal muscle tissue engineering. Biofabrication 2023; 15. [PMID: 36689776 DOI: 10.1088/1758-5090/acb573] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/27/2022] [Accepted: 01/23/2023] [Indexed: 01/24/2023]
Abstract
Three-dimensional (3D) bioprinting is an emerging technology, which turned out to be an optimal tool for tissue engineering approaches. To date, different printing systems have been developed. Among them, the extrusion-based approach demonstrated to be the most suitable for skeletal muscle tissue engineering, due to its ability to produce and deposit printing fibers in a parallel pattern that well mimic the native skeletal muscle tissue architecture. In tissue bioengineering, a key role is played by biomaterials, which must possess the key requisite of 'printability'. Nevertheless, this feature is not often well correlated with cell requirements, such as motives for cellular adhesion and/or absorbability. To overcome this hurdle, several efforts have been made to obtain an effective bioink by combining two different biomaterials in order to reach a good printability besides a suitable biological activity. However, despite being efficient, this strategy reveals several outcomes limitations. We report here the development and characterization of a novel extrusion-based 3D bioprinting system, and its application for correction of volumetric muscle loss (VML) injury in a mouse model. The developed bioprinting system is based on the use of PEG-Fibrinogen, a unique biomaterial with excellent biocompatibility, well-suited for skeletal muscle tissue engineering. With this approach, we obtained highly organized 3D constructs, in which murine muscle progenitors were able to differentiate into muscle fibers arranged in aligned bundles and capable of spontaneously contracting when culturedin vitro. Furthermore, to evaluate the potential of the developed system in future regenerative medicine applications, bioprinted constructs laden with either murine or human muscle progenitors were transplanted to regenerate theTibialis Anteriormuscle of a VML murine model, one month after grafting.
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Affiliation(s)
- E Fornetti
- Department of Biology, University of Rome 'Tor Vergata', Rome, Italy
| | - F De Paolis
- Department of Biology, University of Rome 'Tor Vergata', Rome, Italy.,PhD Program in Cellular and Molecular Biology, Department of Biology, University of Rome 'Tor Vergata', Rome, Italy
| | - C Fuoco
- Department of Biology, University of Rome 'Tor Vergata', Rome, Italy
| | - S Bernardini
- Department of Biology, University of Rome 'Tor Vergata', Rome, Italy
| | - S M Giannitelli
- Department of Engineering, Università Campus Bio-Medico, Rome, Italy
| | - A Rainer
- Department of Engineering, Università Campus Bio-Medico, Rome, Italy.,Institute of Nanotechnology (NANOTEC), National Research Council, Lecce, Italy
| | - D Seliktar
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Techion Institute, Haifa, Israel
| | - F Magdinier
- Aix-Marseille University, INSERM, MMG, Marseille Medical Genetics, Marseille, France
| | - J Baldi
- IRCCS Regina Elena National Cancer Institute, Rome, Italy
| | - R Biagini
- IRCCS Regina Elena National Cancer Institute, Rome, Italy
| | - S Cannata
- Department of Biology, University of Rome 'Tor Vergata', Rome, Italy
| | - S Testa
- Aix-Marseille University, INSERM, MMG, Marseille Medical Genetics, Marseille, France
| | - C Gargioli
- Department of Biology, University of Rome 'Tor Vergata', Rome, Italy
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7
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Cohen SA, Bar-Am O, Fuoco C, Saar G, Gargioli C, Seliktar D. In vivo restoration of dystrophin expression in mdx mice using intra-muscular and intra-arterial injections of hydrogel microsphere carriers of exon skipping antisense oligonucleotides. Cell Death Dis 2022; 13:779. [PMID: 36085138 PMCID: PMC9463190 DOI: 10.1038/s41419-022-05166-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/10/2021] [Revised: 08/01/2022] [Accepted: 08/05/2022] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Abstract
Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) is a genetic disease caused by a mutation in the X-linked Dytrophin gene preventing the expression of the functional protein. Exon skipping therapy using antisense oligonucleotides (AONs) is a promising therapeutic strategy for DMD. While benefits of AON therapy have been demonstrated, some challenges remain before this strategy can be applied more comprehensively to DMD patients. These include instability of AONs due to low nuclease resistance and poor tissue uptake. Delivery systems have been examined to improve the availability and stability of oligonucleotide drugs, including polymeric carriers. Previously, we showed the potential of a hydrogel-based polymeric carrier in the form of injectable PEG-fibrinogen (PF) microspheres for delivery of chemically modified 2'-O-methyl phosphorothioate (2OMePs) AONs. The PF microspheres proved to be cytocompatible and provided sustained release of the AONs for several weeks, causing increased cellular uptake in mdx dystrophic mouse cells. Here, we further investigated this delivery strategy by examining in vivo efficacy of this approach. The 2OMePS/PEI polyplexes loaded in PF microspheres were delivered by intramuscular (IM) or intra-femoral (IF) injections. We examined the carrier biodegradation profiles, AON uptake efficiency, dystrophin restoration, and muscle histopathology. Both administration routes enhanced dystrophin restoration and improved the histopathology of the mdx mice muscles. The IF administration of the microspheres improved the efficacy of the 2OMePS AONs over the IM administration. This was demonstrated by a higher exon skipping percentage and a smaller percentage of centered nucleus fibers (CNF) found in H&E-stained muscles. The restoration of dystrophin expression found for both IM and IF treatments revealed a reduced dystrophic phenotype of the treated muscles. The study concludes that injectable PF microspheres can be used as a carrier system to improve the overall therapeutic outcomes of exon skipping-based therapy for treating DMD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shani Attias Cohen
- grid.6451.60000000121102151Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Technion–Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Orit Bar-Am
- grid.6451.60000000121102151Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Technion–Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Claudia Fuoco
- grid.6530.00000 0001 2300 0941Department of Biology, Rome University Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
| | - Galit Saar
- grid.6451.60000000121102151Biomedical Core Facility, Faculty of Medicine, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Cesare Gargioli
- grid.6530.00000 0001 2300 0941Department of Biology, Rome University Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
| | - Dror Seliktar
- grid.6451.60000000121102151Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Technion–Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
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8
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Cohen N, Vagima Y, Mouhadeb O, Toister E, Gutman H, Lazar S, Jayson A, Artzy-Schnirman A, Sznitman J, Ordentlich A, Yitzhaki S, Seliktar D, Mamroud E, Epstein E. PEG-fibrinogen hydrogel microspheres as a scaffold for therapeutic delivery of immune cells. Front Bioeng Biotechnol 2022; 10:905557. [PMID: 36017344 PMCID: PMC9395737 DOI: 10.3389/fbioe.2022.905557] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/27/2022] [Accepted: 07/14/2022] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Recent advances in the field of cell therapy have proposed new solutions for tissue repair and regeneration using various cell delivery approaches. Here we studied ex vivo a novel topical delivery system of encapsulated cells in hybrid polyethylene glycol-fibrinogen (PEG-Fb) hydrogel microspheres to respiratory tract models. We investigated basic parameters of cell encapsulation, delivery and release in conditions of inflamed and damaged lungs of bacterial-infected mice. The establishment of each step in the study was essential for the proof of concept. We demonstrated co-encapsulation of alveolar macrophages and epithelial cells that were highly viable and equally distributed inside the microspheres. We found that encapsulated macrophages exposed to bacterial endotoxin lipopolysaccharide preserved high viability and secreted moderate levels of TNFα, whereas non-encapsulated cells exhibited a burst TNFα secretion and reduced viability. LPS-exposed encapsulated macrophages exhibited elongated morphology and out-migration capability from microspheres. Microsphere degradation and cell release in inflamed lung environment was studied ex vivo by the incubation of encapsulated macrophages with lung extracts derived from intranasally infected mice with Yersinia pestis, demonstrating the potential in cell targeting and release in inflamed lungs. Finally, we demonstrated microsphere delivery to a multi-component airways-on-chip platform that mimic human nasal, bronchial and alveolar airways in serially connected compartments. This study demonstrates the feasibility in using hydrogel microspheres as an effective method for topical cell delivery to the lungs in the context of pulmonary damage and the need for tissue repair.
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Affiliation(s)
- Noam Cohen
- Israel Institute for Biological Research, Ness-Ziona, Israel
| | - Yaron Vagima
- Israel Institute for Biological Research, Ness-Ziona, Israel
- *Correspondence: Yaron Vagima, ; Eyal Epstein,
| | - Odelia Mouhadeb
- Israel Institute for Biological Research, Ness-Ziona, Israel
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Einat Toister
- Israel Institute for Biological Research, Ness-Ziona, Israel
| | - Hila Gutman
- Israel Institute for Biological Research, Ness-Ziona, Israel
| | - Shlomi Lazar
- Israel Institute for Biological Research, Ness-Ziona, Israel
| | - Avital Jayson
- Israel Institute for Biological Research, Ness-Ziona, Israel
| | - Arbel Artzy-Schnirman
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Josué Sznitman
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Arie Ordentlich
- Israel Institute for Biological Research, Ness-Ziona, Israel
| | - Shmuel Yitzhaki
- Israel Institute for Biological Research, Ness-Ziona, Israel
| | - Dror Seliktar
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | | | - Eyal Epstein
- Israel Institute for Biological Research, Ness-Ziona, Israel
- *Correspondence: Yaron Vagima, ; Eyal Epstein,
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9
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Wu H, Song L, Yam JKH, Plotkin M, Wang H, Rybtke M, Seliktar D, Kofidis T, Høiby N, Tolker-Nielsen T, Song Z, Givskov M. Effects of antibiotic treatment and phagocyte infiltration on development of Pseudomonas aeruginosa biofilm—Insights from the application of a novel PF hydrogel model in vitro and in vivo. Front Cell Infect Microbiol 2022; 12:826450. [PMID: 35959369 PMCID: PMC9362844 DOI: 10.3389/fcimb.2022.826450] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2021] [Accepted: 06/30/2022] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Background and purpose Bacterial biofilm infections are major health issues as the infections are highly tolerant to antibiotics and host immune defenses. Appropriate biofilm models are important to develop and improve to make progress in future biofilm research. Here, we investigated the ability of PF hydrogel material to facilitate the development and study of Pseudomonas aeruginosa biofilms in vitro and in vivo. Methods Wild-type P. aeruginosa PAO1 bacteria were embedded in PF hydrogel situated in vitro or in vivo, and the following aspects were investigated: 1) biofilm development; 2) host immune response and its effect on the bacteria; and 3) efficacy of antibiotic treatment. Results Microscopy demonstrated that P. aeruginosa developed typical biofilms inside the PF hydrogels in vitro and in mouse peritoneal cavities where the PF hydrogels were infiltrated excessively by polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMNs). The bacteria remained at a level of ~106 colony-forming unit (CFU)/hydrogel for 7 days, indicating that the PMNs could not eradicate the biofilm bacteria. β-Lactam or aminoglycoside mono treatment at 64× minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) killed all bacteria in day 0 in vitro biofilms, but not in day 1 and older biofilms, even at a concentration of 256× MIC. Combination treatment with the antibiotics at 256× MIC completely killed the bacteria in day 1 in vitro biofilms, and combination treatment in most of the cases showed significantly better bactericidal effects than monotherapies. However, in the case of the established in vivo biofilms, the mono and combination antibiotic treatments did not efficiently kill the bacteria. Conclusion Our results indicate that the bacteria formed typical biofilms in PF hydrogel in vitro and in vivo and that the biofilm bacteria were tolerant against antibiotics and host immunity. The PF hydrogel biofilm model is simple and easy to fabricate and highly reproducible with various application possibilities. We conclude that the PF hydrogel biofilm model is a new platform that will facilitate progress in future biofilm investigations, as well as studies of the efficacy of new potential medicine against biofilm infections.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hong Wu
- Costerton Biofilm Center, and Institute of International Health, Immunology and Microbiology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
- Department of Clinical Microbiology, Rigshospitalet, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Lulu Song
- The Singapore Centre on Environmental Life Sciences Engineering, Nanyang Technical University, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Joey Kuok Hoong Yam
- The Singapore Centre on Environmental Life Sciences Engineering, Nanyang Technical University, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Marian Plotkin
- Nanoscience and Nanotechnology Initiative, Faculty of Engineering, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Hengzhuang Wang
- Department of Clinical Microbiology, Rigshospitalet, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Morten Rybtke
- Costerton Biofilm Center, and Institute of International Health, Immunology and Microbiology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Dror Seliktar
- Nanoscience and Nanotechnology Initiative, Faculty of Engineering, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Theodoros Kofidis
- Department of Surgery, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
- Department of Cardiac, Thoracic and Vascular Surgery, National University Heart Centre, National University Health System, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Niels Høiby
- Costerton Biofilm Center, and Institute of International Health, Immunology and Microbiology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
- Department of Clinical Microbiology, Rigshospitalet, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Tim Tolker-Nielsen
- Costerton Biofilm Center, and Institute of International Health, Immunology and Microbiology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Zhijun Song
- Department of Clinical Microbiology, Rigshospitalet, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
- Department of Clinical Microbiology, Hospital South West Jutland, University Hospital of Southern Denmark, Esbjerg, Denmark
- *Correspondence: Zhijun Song,
| | - Michael Givskov
- Costerton Biofilm Center, and Institute of International Health, Immunology and Microbiology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
- The Singapore Centre on Environmental Life Sciences Engineering, Nanyang Technical University, Singapore, Singapore
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10
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Hamami R, Simaan-Yameen H, Gargioli C, Seliktar D. Comparison of Four Different Preparation Methods for Making Injectable Microgels for Tissue Engineering and Cell Therapy. Regen Eng Transl Med 2022. [DOI: 10.1007/s40883-022-00261-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
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11
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Attias Cohen S, Simaan-Yameen H, Fuoco C, Gargioli C, Seliktar D. Injectable hydrogel microspheres for sustained gene delivery of antisense oligonucleotides to restore the expression of dystrophin protein in duchenne muscular dystrophy. Eur Polym J 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.eurpolymj.2022.111038] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
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12
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Cohen T, Kossover O, Peled E, Bick T, Hasanov L, Chun TT, Cool S, Lewinson D, Seliktar D. A combined cell and growth factor delivery for the repair of a critical size tibia defect using biodegradable hydrogel implants. J Tissue Eng Regen Med 2022; 16:380-395. [PMID: 35119200 PMCID: PMC9303443 DOI: 10.1002/term.3285] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/02/2021] [Revised: 12/09/2021] [Accepted: 01/11/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
The ability to repair critical‐sized long‐bone injuries using growth factor and cell delivery was investigated using hydrogel biomaterials. Physiological doses of the recombinant human bone morphogenic protein‐2 (rhBMP2) were delivered in a sustained manner from a biodegradable hydrogel containing peripheral human blood‐derived endothelial progenitor cells (hEPCs). The biodegradable implants made from polyethylene glycol (PEG) and denatured fibrinogen (PEG‐fibrinogen, PF) were loaded with 7.7 μg/ml of rhBMP2 and 2.5 × 106 cells/ml hEPCs. The safety and efficacy of the implant were tested in a rodent model of a critical‐size long‐bone defect. The hydrogel implants were formed ex‐situ and placed into defects in the tibia of athymic nude rats and analyzed for bone repair after 13 weeks following surgery. The hydrogels containing a combination of 7.7 μg/ml of rhBMP2 and 2.5 × 106 cells/ml hEPCs were compared to control hydrogels containing 7.7 μg/ml of rhBMP2 only, 2.5 × 106 cells/ml hEPCs only, or bare hydrogels. Assessments of bone repair include histological analysis, bone formation at the site of implantation using quantitative microCT, and assessment of implant degradation. New bone formation was detected in all treated animals, with the highest amounts found in the treatments that included animals that combined the PF implant with rhBMP2. Moreover, statistically significant increases in the tissue mineral density (TMD), trabecular number and trabecular thickness were observed in defects treated with rhBMP2 compared to non‐rhBMP2 defects. New bone formation was significantly higher in the hEPC‐treated defects compared to bare hydrogel defects, but there were no significant differences in new bone formation, trabecular number, trabecular thickness or TMD at 13 weeks when comparing the rhBMP2 + hEPCs‐treated defects to rhBMP2‐treated defects. The study concludes that the bone regeneration using hydrogel implants containing hEPCs are overshadowed by enhanced osteogenesis associated with sustained delivery of rhBMP2.
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Affiliation(s)
- Talia Cohen
- The Bruce Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Olga Kossover
- Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Eli Peled
- The Bruce Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel.,Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Rambam Medical Center, Haifa, Israel
| | - Tova Bick
- The Institute of Research of Bone Healing, the Rambam Healthcare Campus, Haifa, Israel
| | - Lena Hasanov
- Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Tan Tuan Chun
- Glycotherapeutics Group, Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology, A*STAR, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Simon Cool
- Glycotherapeutics Group, Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology, A*STAR, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Dina Lewinson
- The Institute of Research of Bone Healing, the Rambam Healthcare Campus, Haifa, Israel
| | - Dror Seliktar
- Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
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13
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Szklanny AA, Machour M, Redenski I, Chochola V, Goldfracht I, Kaplan B, Epshtein M, Simaan Yameen H, Merdler U, Feinberg A, Seliktar D, Korin N, Jaroš J, Levenberg S. 3D Bioprinting of Engineered Tissue Flaps with Hierarchical Vessel Networks (VesselNet) for Direct Host-To-Implant Perfusion. Adv Mater 2021; 33:e2102661. [PMID: 34510579 DOI: 10.1002/adma.202102661] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/07/2021] [Revised: 07/28/2021] [Indexed: 05/09/2023]
Abstract
Engineering hierarchical vasculatures is critical for creating implantable functional thick tissues. Current approaches focus on fabricating mesoscale vessels for implantation or hierarchical microvascular in vitro models, but a combined approach is yet to be achieved to create engineered tissue flaps. Here, millimetric vessel-like scaffolds and 3D bioprinted vascularized tissues interconnect, creating fully engineered hierarchical vascular constructs for implantation. Endothelial and support cells spontaneously form microvascular networks in bioprinted tissues using a human collagen bioink. Sacrificial molds are used to create polymeric vessel-like scaffolds and endothelial cells seeded in their lumen form native-like endothelia. Assembling endothelialized scaffolds within vascularizing hydrogels incites the bioprinted vasculature and endothelium to cooperatively create vessels, enabling tissue perfusion through the scaffold lumen. Using a cuffing microsurgery approach, the engineered tissue is directly anastomosed with a rat femoral artery, promoting a rich host vasculature within the implanted tissue. After two weeks in vivo, contrast microcomputer tomography imaging and lectin perfusion of explanted engineered tissues verify the host ingrowth vasculature's functionality. Furthermore, the hierarchical vessel network (VesselNet) supports in vitro functionality of cardiomyocytes. Finally, the proposed approach is expanded to mimic complex structures with native-like millimetric vessels. This work presents a novel strategy aiming to create fully-engineered patient-specific thick tissue flaps.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ariel A Szklanny
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, 32000, Israel
| | - Majd Machour
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, 32000, Israel
| | - Idan Redenski
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, 32000, Israel
| | - Václav Chochola
- Department of Histology and Embryology, Faculty of Medicine, Masaryk University, Brno, 625 00, Czech Republic
| | - Idit Goldfracht
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, 32000, Israel
| | - Ben Kaplan
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, 32000, Israel
| | - Mark Epshtein
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, 32000, Israel
| | - Haneen Simaan Yameen
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, 32000, Israel
| | - Uri Merdler
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, 32000, Israel
| | - Adam Feinberg
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA, 15213, USA
| | - Dror Seliktar
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, 32000, Israel
| | - Netanel Korin
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, 32000, Israel
| | - Josef Jaroš
- Cell and Tissue Regeneration, International Clinical Research Center, St. Anne's University Hospital Brno, Brno, 65691, Czech Republic
| | - Shulamit Levenberg
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, 32000, Israel
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14
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Chirivì M, Maiullari F, Milan M, Presutti D, Cordiglieri C, Crosti M, Sarnicola ML, Soluri A, Volpi M, Święszkowski W, Prati D, Rizzi M, Costantini M, Seliktar D, Parisi C, Bearzi C, Rizzi R. Tumor Extracellular Matrix Stiffness Promptly Modulates the Phenotype and Gene Expression of Infiltrating T Lymphocytes. Int J Mol Sci 2021; 22:5862. [PMID: 34070750 PMCID: PMC8198248 DOI: 10.3390/ijms22115862] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/29/2021] [Revised: 05/24/2021] [Accepted: 05/27/2021] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
The immune system is a fine modulator of the tumor biology supporting or inhibiting its progression, growth, invasion and conveys the pharmacological treatment effect. Tumors, on their side, have developed escaping mechanisms from the immune system action ranging from the direct secretion of biochemical signals to an indirect reaction, in which the cellular actors of the tumor microenvironment (TME) collaborate to mechanically condition the extracellular matrix (ECM) making it inhospitable to immune cells. TME is composed of several cell lines besides cancer cells, including tumor-associated macrophages, cancer-associated fibroblasts, CD4+ and CD8+ lymphocytes, and innate immunity cells. These populations interface with each other to prepare a conservative response, capable of evading the defense mechanisms implemented by the host's immune system. The presence or absence, in particular, of cytotoxic CD8+ cells in the vicinity of the main tumor mass, is able to predict, respectively, the success or failure of drug therapy. Among various mechanisms of immunescaping, in this study, we characterized the modulation of the phenotypic profile of CD4+ and CD8+ cells in resting and activated states, in response to the mechanical pressure exerted by a three-dimensional in vitro system, able to recapitulate the rheological and stiffness properties of the tumor ECM.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maila Chirivì
- Fondazione Istituto Nazionale di Genetica Molecolare, 20122 Milan, Italy; (M.C.); (F.M.); (M.M.); (C.C.); (M.C.); (M.L.S.); (C.B.)
- Department of Medical Surgical Sciences and Biotechnologies, Sapienza University of Rome, C.so della Repubblica 79, 04100 Latina, Italy
| | - Fabio Maiullari
- Fondazione Istituto Nazionale di Genetica Molecolare, 20122 Milan, Italy; (M.C.); (F.M.); (M.M.); (C.C.); (M.C.); (M.L.S.); (C.B.)
- Department of Biology, University of Rome Tor Vergata, 00133 Rome, Italy
| | - Marika Milan
- Fondazione Istituto Nazionale di Genetica Molecolare, 20122 Milan, Italy; (M.C.); (F.M.); (M.M.); (C.C.); (M.C.); (M.L.S.); (C.B.)
- Institute of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, National Research Council of Italy (IBBC-CNR), Via Ercole Ramarini, 32, Monterotondo, 00015 Rome, Italy; (A.S.); (C.P.)
| | - Dario Presutti
- Institute of Physical Chemistry Polish Academy of Sciences, Marcina Kasprzaka 44/52, 01-224 Warszawa, Poland; (D.P.); (M.C.)
| | - Chiara Cordiglieri
- Fondazione Istituto Nazionale di Genetica Molecolare, 20122 Milan, Italy; (M.C.); (F.M.); (M.M.); (C.C.); (M.C.); (M.L.S.); (C.B.)
| | - Mariacristina Crosti
- Fondazione Istituto Nazionale di Genetica Molecolare, 20122 Milan, Italy; (M.C.); (F.M.); (M.M.); (C.C.); (M.C.); (M.L.S.); (C.B.)
| | - Maria Lucia Sarnicola
- Fondazione Istituto Nazionale di Genetica Molecolare, 20122 Milan, Italy; (M.C.); (F.M.); (M.M.); (C.C.); (M.C.); (M.L.S.); (C.B.)
| | - Andrea Soluri
- Institute of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, National Research Council of Italy (IBBC-CNR), Via Ercole Ramarini, 32, Monterotondo, 00015 Rome, Italy; (A.S.); (C.P.)
- Unit of Molecular Neurosciences, University Campus Bio-Medico, 00128 Roma, Italy
| | - Marina Volpi
- Faculty of Materials Science and Engineering, Warsaw University of Technology, 02-507 Warsaw, Poland; (M.V.); (W.Ś.)
| | - Wojciech Święszkowski
- Faculty of Materials Science and Engineering, Warsaw University of Technology, 02-507 Warsaw, Poland; (M.V.); (W.Ś.)
| | - Daniele Prati
- Department of Transfusion Medicine and Hematology, IRCCS Granda Hospital Maggiore Policlinico Foundation, Via Francesco Sforza 35, 20122 Milan, Italy;
| | - Marta Rizzi
- Ufficio Programmazione e Grant Office, National Research Council of Italy (UPGO-CNR), Piazzale Aldo Moro 7, 00185 Rome, Italy;
| | - Marco Costantini
- Institute of Physical Chemistry Polish Academy of Sciences, Marcina Kasprzaka 44/52, 01-224 Warszawa, Poland; (D.P.); (M.C.)
| | - Dror Seliktar
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Technion Institute, Haifa 32000, Israel;
| | - Chiara Parisi
- Institute of Biochemistry and Cell Biology, National Research Council of Italy (IBBC-CNR), Via Ercole Ramarini, 32, Monterotondo, 00015 Rome, Italy; (A.S.); (C.P.)
| | - Claudia Bearzi
- Fondazione Istituto Nazionale di Genetica Molecolare, 20122 Milan, Italy; (M.C.); (F.M.); (M.M.); (C.C.); (M.C.); (M.L.S.); (C.B.)
- Institute of Genetic and Biomedical Research, UOS of Milan, National Research Council (IRGB-CNR), Via Gaudenzio Fantoli 16/15, 20138 Milan, Italy
| | - Roberto Rizzi
- Fondazione Istituto Nazionale di Genetica Molecolare, 20122 Milan, Italy; (M.C.); (F.M.); (M.M.); (C.C.); (M.C.); (M.L.S.); (C.B.)
- Institute of Biomedical Technologies, National Research Council (ITB-CNR), Via Fratelli Cervi, 93, Segrate, 20090 Milan, Italy
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15
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Mun A, Simaan Yameen H, Edelbaum G, Seliktar D. Alginate hydrogel beads embedded with drug-bearing polycaprolactone microspheres for sustained release of paclobutrazol. Sci Rep 2021; 11:10877. [PMID: 34035364 PMCID: PMC8149846 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-90338-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/21/2020] [Accepted: 04/06/2021] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
In recent years there has been a growing demand for the development of agrochemical controlled release (CR) technologies. In the present study, we aimed to create a novel agricultural CR device using two polymeric systems that have been predominantly employed in biomedical applications: beads of alginate hydrogel embedded with drug-bearing Polycaprolactone (PCL) microspheres. The combined device utilizes the advantages of each polymer type for biodegradation and controlled release of Paclobutrazol (PBZ), a common growth retardant in plants. Surface morphology of the alginate beads was characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and water immersion tests were performed for stability and controlled release measurements. Bioassays were performed both in accelerated laboratory conditions and in field conditions. The results showed a capability to control the size of PBZ-loaded PCL microspheres through modification of homogenization speed and emulsifier concentration. Enlargement of PCL microsphere size had an adverse effect on release of PBZ from the alginate device. The growth of oatmeal plants as a model system was affected by the controlled release of PBZ. The preliminary field experiment observed growth retardation during two consecutive rainy seasons, with results indicating a substantial benefit of the sustained growth inhibition through the controlled release formulation. The final product has the potential to be used as a carrier for different substances in the agrochemical industry.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexandra Mun
- Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Technion Israel Institute of Technology, 32000, Haifa, Israel.,Directorate of Defense Research & Development, IDF, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Haneen Simaan Yameen
- Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Technion Israel Institute of Technology, 32000, Haifa, Israel
| | - Giora Edelbaum
- Directorate of Defense Research & Development, IDF, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Dror Seliktar
- Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Technion Israel Institute of Technology, 32000, Haifa, Israel.
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16
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Melino S, Seliktar D. A hydrogel reveals an elusive cancer stem cell. Cell Death Dis 2021; 12:415. [PMID: 33879776 PMCID: PMC8058059 DOI: 10.1038/s41419-021-03696-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2021] [Revised: 04/06/2021] [Accepted: 04/08/2021] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Sonia Melino
- Department of Chemical Science and Technologies, University of Rome "Tor Vergata", Rome, Italy
| | - Dror Seliktar
- Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, 3200003, Israel.
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17
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Costantini M, Testa S, Fornetti E, Fuoco C, Sanchez Riera C, Nie M, Bernardini S, Rainer A, Baldi J, Zoccali C, Biagini R, Castagnoli L, Vitiello L, Blaauw B, Seliktar D, Święszkowski W, Garstecki P, Takeuchi S, Cesareni G, Cannata S, Gargioli C. Biofabricating murine and human myo-substitutes for rapid volumetric muscle loss restoration. EMBO Mol Med 2021; 13:e12778. [PMID: 33587336 PMCID: PMC7933978 DOI: 10.15252/emmm.202012778] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/19/2020] [Revised: 01/05/2021] [Accepted: 01/12/2021] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
The importance of skeletal muscle tissue is undoubted being the controller of several vital functions including respiration and all voluntary locomotion activities. However, its regenerative capability is limited and significant tissue loss often leads to a chronic pathologic condition known as volumetric muscle loss. Here, we propose a biofabrication approach to rapidly restore skeletal muscle mass, 3D histoarchitecture, and functionality. By recapitulating muscle anisotropic organization at the microscale level, we demonstrate to efficiently guide cell differentiation and myobundle formation both in vitro and in vivo. Of note, upon implantation, the biofabricated myo-substitutes support the formation of new blood vessels and neuromuscular junctions-pivotal aspects for cell survival and muscle contractile functionalities-together with an advanced muscle mass and force recovery. Altogether, these data represent a solid base for further testing the myo-substitutes in large animal size and a promising platform to be eventually translated into clinical scenarios.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marco Costantini
- Institute of Physical ChemistryPolish Academy of SciencesWarsawPoland
| | - Stefano Testa
- Department of BiologyRome University Tor VergataRomeItaly
| | | | - Claudia Fuoco
- Department of BiologyRome University Tor VergataRomeItaly
| | | | - Minghao Nie
- Department of Mechano‐InformaticsGraduate School of Information Science and TechnologyThe University of TokyoTokyoJapan
| | | | - Alberto Rainer
- Department of EngineeringUniversità Campus Bio‐Medico di RomaRomeItaly
- Institute of Nanotechnology (NANOTEC)National Research CouncilLecceItaly
| | - Jacopo Baldi
- IRCCS Regina Elena National Cancer InstituteRomeItaly
| | | | | | | | | | - Bert Blaauw
- Department of Biomedical Science and Venetian Institute of Molecular MedicineUniversity of PadovaPadovaItaly
| | - Dror Seliktar
- Department of Biomedical EngineeringTechion InstituteHaifaIsrael
| | - Wojciech Święszkowski
- Faculty of Materials Science and EngineeringWarsaw University of TechnologyWarsawPoland
| | - Piotr Garstecki
- Institute of Physical ChemistryPolish Academy of SciencesWarsawPoland
| | - Shoji Takeuchi
- Department of Mechano‐InformaticsGraduate School of Information Science and TechnologyThe University of TokyoTokyoJapan
- Institute of Industrial ScienceThe University of TokyoTokyoJapan
| | - Gianni Cesareni
- Department of BiologyRome University Tor VergataRomeItaly
- IRCCS Fondazione Santa LuciaRomeItaly
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18
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Schmitz C, Pepelanova I, Seliktar D, Potekhina E, Belousov VV, Scheper T, Lavrentieva A. Live reporting for hypoxia: Hypoxia sensor-modified mesenchymal stem cells as in vitro reporters. Biotechnol Bioeng 2020; 117:3265-3276. [PMID: 32667700 DOI: 10.1002/bit.27503] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/02/2020] [Revised: 06/09/2020] [Accepted: 07/14/2020] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Natural oxygen gradients occur in tissues of biological organisms and also in the context of three-dimensional (3D) in vitro cultivation. Oxygen diffusion limitation and metabolic oxygen consumption by embedded cells produce areas of hypoxia in the tissue/matrix. However, reliable systems to detect oxygen gradients and cellular response to hypoxia in 3D cell culture systems are still missing. In this study, we developed a system for visualization of oxygen gradients in 3D using human adipose tissue-derived mesenchymal stem cells (hAD-MSCs) modified to stably express a fluorescent genetically engineered hypoxia sensor HRE-dUnaG. Modified cells retained their stem cell characteristics in terms of proliferation and differentiation capacity. The hypoxia-reporter cells were evaluated by fluorescence microscopy and flow cytometry under variable oxygen levels (2.5%, 5%, and 7.5% O2 ). We demonstrated that reporter hAD-MSCs output is sensitive to different oxygen levels and displays fast decay kinetics after reoxygenation. Additionally, the reporter cells were encapsulated in bulk hydrogels with a variable cell number, to investigate the sensor response in model 3D cell culture applications. The use of hypoxia-reporting cells based on MSCs represents a valuable tool for approaching the genuine in vivo cellular microenvironment and will allow a better understanding of the regenerative potential of AD-MSCs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carola Schmitz
- Institute of Technical Chemistry, Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz University Hannover, Hannover, Germany
| | - Iliyana Pepelanova
- Institute of Technical Chemistry, Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz University Hannover, Hannover, Germany
| | - Dror Seliktar
- Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Technion, Haifa, Israel
| | | | - Vsevolod V Belousov
- Center for Precision Genome Editing and Genetic Technologies for Biomedicine, Pirogov Russian National Research Medical University, Moscow, Russia.,Federal Center of Brain Research and Neurotechnologies, Federal Medical Biological Agency, Moscow, Russia
| | - Thomas Scheper
- Institute of Technical Chemistry, Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz University Hannover, Hannover, Germany
| | - Antonina Lavrentieva
- Institute of Technical Chemistry, Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz University Hannover, Hannover, Germany
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19
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Kossover O, Cohen N, Lewis JA, Berkovitch Y, Peled E, Seliktar D. Growth Factor Delivery for the Repair of a Critical Size Tibia Defect Using an Acellular, Biodegradable Polyethylene Glycol-Albumin Hydrogel Implant. ACS Biomater Sci Eng 2019; 6:100-111. [PMID: 33463206 DOI: 10.1021/acsbiomaterials.9b00672] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
Abstract
Growth factor delivery using acellular matrices presents a promising alternative to current treatment options for bone repair in critical-size injuries. However, supra-physiological doses of the factors can introduce safety concerns that must be alleviated, mainly by sustaining delivery of smaller doses using the matrix as a depot. We developed an acellular, biodegradable hydrogel implant composed of poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) and denatured albumin to be used for sustained delivery of bone morphogenic protein-2 (BMP2). In this study, poly(ethylene glycol)-albumin (PEG-Alb) hydrogels were produced and loaded with 7.7 μg/mL of recombinant human BMP2 (rhBMP2) to be tested for safety and performance in a critical-size long-bone defect, using a rodent model. The hydrogels were formed ex situ in a 5 mm long cylindrical mold of 3 mm diameter, implanted into defects made in the tibia of Sprague-Dawley rats and compared to non-rhBMP2 control hydrogels at 13 weeks following surgery. The hydrogels were also compared to the more established PEG-fibrinogen (PEG-Fib) hydrogels we have tested previously. Comprehensive in vitro characterization as well as in vivo assessments that include: histological analyses, including safety parameters (i.e., local tolerance and toxicity), assessment of implant degradation, bone formation, as well as repair tissue density using quantitative microCT analysis were performed. The in vitro assessments demonstrated similarities between the mechanical and release properties of the PEG-Alb hydrogels to those of the PEG-Fib hydrogels. Safety analysis presented good local tolerance in the bone defects and no signs of toxicity. A significantly larger amount of bone was detected at 13 weeks in the rhBMP2-treated defects as compared to non-rhBMP2 defects. However, no significant differences were noted in bone formation at 13 weeks when comparing the PEG-Alb-treated defects to PEG-Fib-treated defects (with or without BMP2). The study concludes that hydrogel scaffolds made from PEG-Alb containing 7.7 μg/mL of rhBMP2 are effective in accelerating the bridging of boney defects in the tibia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Olga Kossover
- Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa 3200003, Israel
| | - Natalie Cohen
- The Bruce Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa 320003, Israel
| | - Jacob A Lewis
- Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa 3200003, Israel
| | - Yulia Berkovitch
- Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa 3200003, Israel
| | - Eli Peled
- The Bruce Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa 320003, Israel.,Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Rambam Medical Center, Haifa 3200000, Israel
| | - Dror Seliktar
- Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa 3200003, Israel
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20
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Sheyn D, Ben-David S, Tawackoli W, Zhou Z, Salehi K, Bez M, De Mel S, Chan V, Roth J, Avalos P, Giaconi JC, Yameen H, Hazanov L, Seliktar D, Li D, Gazit D, Gazit Z. Human iPSCs can be differentiated into notochordal cells that reduce intervertebral disc degeneration in a porcine model. Am J Cancer Res 2019; 9:7506-7524. [PMID: 31695783 PMCID: PMC6831475 DOI: 10.7150/thno.34898] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/04/2019] [Accepted: 06/12/2019] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Introduction: As many as 80% of the adult population experience back pain at some point in their lifetimes. Previous studies have indicated a link between back pain and intervertebral disc (IVD) degeneration. Despite decades of research, there is an urgent need for robust stem cell therapy targeting underlying causes rather than symptoms. It has been proposed that notochordal cells (NCs) appear to be the ideal cell type to regenerate the IVD: these cells disappear in humans as they mature, are replaced by nucleus pulposus (NP) cells, and their disappearance correlates with the initiation of degeneration of the disc. Human NCs are in short supply, thus here aimed for generation of notochordal-like cells from induced pluripotent cells (iPSCs). Methods: Human iPSCs were generated from normal dermal fibroblasts by transfecting plasmids encoding for six factors: OCT4, SOX2, KLF4, L-MYC, LIN28, and p53 shRNA. Then the iPSCs were treated with GSK3i to induce differentiation towards Primitive Streak Mesoderm (PSM). The differentiation was confirmed by qRT-PCR and immunofluorescence. PSM cells were transfected with Brachyury (Br)-encoding plasmid and the cells were encapsulated in Tetronic-tetraacrylate-fibrinogen (TF) hydrogel that mimics the NP environment (G'=1kPa), cultured in hypoxic conditions (2% O2) and with specifically defined growth media. The cells were also tested in vivo in a large animal model. IVD degeneration was induced after an annular puncture in pigs, 4 weeks later the cells were injected and IVDs were analyzed at 12 weeks after the injury using MRI, gene expression analysis and histology. Results: After short-term exposure of iPSCs to GSK3i there was a significant change in cell morphology, Primitive Streak Mesoderm (PSM) markers (Brachyury, MIXL1, FOXF1) were upregulated and markers of pluripotency (Nanog, Oct4, Sox2) were downregulated, both compared to the control group. PSM cells nucleofected with Br (PSM-Br) cultured in TF hydrogels retained the NC phenotype consistently for up to 8 weeks, as seen in the gene expression analysis. PSM-Br cells were co-cultured with bone marrow (BM)-derived mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) which, with time, expressed the NC markers in higher levels, however the levels of expression in BM-MSCs alone did not change. Higher expression of NC and NP marker genes in human BM-MSCs was found to be induced by iNC-condition media (iNC-CM) than porcine NC-CM. The annular puncture induced IVD degeneration as early as 2 weeks after the procedure. The injected iNCs were detected in the degenerated discs after 8 weeks in vivo. The iNC-treated discs were found protected from degeneration. This was evident in histological analysis and changes in the pH levels, indicative of degeneration state of the discs, observed using qCEST MRI. Immunofluorescence stains show that their phenotype was consistent with the in vitro study, namely they still expressed the notochordal markers Keratin 18, Keratin 19, Noto and Brachyury. Conclusion: In the present study, we report a stepwise differentiation method to generate notochordal cells from human iPSCs. These cells not only demonstrate a sustainable notochordal cell phenotype in vitro and in vivo, but also show the functionality of notochordal cells and have protective effect in case of induced disc degeneration and prevent the change in the pH level of the injected IVDs. The mechanism of this effect could be suggested via the paracrine effect on resident cells, as it was shown in the in vitro studies with MSCs.
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21
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Yosef A, Kossover O, Mironi‐Harpaz I, Mauretti A, Melino S, Mizrahi J, Seliktar D. Fibrinogen-Based Hydrogel Modulus and Ligand Density Effects on Cell Morphogenesis in Two-Dimensional and Three-Dimensional Cell Cultures. Adv Healthc Mater 2019; 8:e1801436. [PMID: 31081289 DOI: 10.1002/adhm.201801436] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/07/2018] [Revised: 03/08/2019] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
There is a need to further explore the convergence of mechanobiology and dimensionality with systematic investigations of cellular response to matrix mechanics in 2D and 3D cultures. Here, a semisynthetic hydrogel capable of supporting both 2D and 3D cell culture is applied to investigate cell response to matrix modulus and ligand density. The culture materials are fabricated from adducts of polyethylene glycol (PEG) or PluronicF127 and fibrinogen fragments, formed into hydrogels by free-radical polymerization, and characterized by shear rheology. Control over the modulus of the materials is accomplished by changing the concentration of synthetic PEG-diacrylate crosslinker (0.5% w/v), and by altering the molecular length of the PEG (10 and 20 kDa). Control over ligand density is accomplished by changing fibrinogen concentrations from 3 to 12 mg mL-1 . In 2D culture, cell motility parameters, including cell speed and persistence time are significantly increased with increasing modulus. In both 2D and 3D culture, cells express vinculin and there is evidence of focal adhesion formation in the high stiffness materials. The modulus- and ligand-dependent morphogenesis response from the cells in 2D culture is contradictory to the same measured response in 3D culture. In 2D culture, anchorage-dependent cells become more elongated and significantly increase their size with increasing ligand density and matrix modulus. In 3D culture, the same anchorage-dependent cells become less spindled and significantly reduce their size in response to increasing ligand density and matrix modulus. These differences arise from dimensionality constraints, most notably the encapsulation of cells in a non-porous hydrogel matrix. These insights underscore the importance of mechanical properties in regulating cell morphogenesis in a 3D culture milieu. The versatility of the hydrogel culture environment further highlights the significance of a modular approach when developing materials that aim to optimize the cell culture environment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrei Yosef
- Faculty of Biomedical EngineeringTechnion—Israel Institute of Technology Haifa 32000 Israel
| | - Olga Kossover
- Faculty of Biomedical EngineeringTechnion—Israel Institute of Technology Haifa 32000 Israel
| | - Iris Mironi‐Harpaz
- Faculty of Biomedical EngineeringTechnion—Israel Institute of Technology Haifa 32000 Israel
| | - Arianna Mauretti
- Department of Chemical Sciences and TechnologiesUniversity of Rome “Tor Vergata” Via della Ricerca Scientifica 1 00133 Rome Italy
| | - Sonia Melino
- Department of Chemical Sciences and TechnologiesUniversity of Rome “Tor Vergata” Via della Ricerca Scientifica 1 00133 Rome Italy
- CIMER Center of Regenerative MedicineTor Vergata Via della Ricerca Scientifica 00133 Rome Italy
| | - Joseph Mizrahi
- Faculty of Biomedical EngineeringTechnion—Israel Institute of Technology Haifa 32000 Israel
| | - Dror Seliktar
- Faculty of Biomedical EngineeringTechnion—Israel Institute of Technology Haifa 32000 Israel
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22
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Fuoco C, Sangalli E, Vono R, Testa S, Sacchetti B, Latronico MVG, Bernardini S, Madeddu P, Cesareni G, Seliktar D, Rizzi R, Bearzi C, Cannata SM, Spinetti G, Gargioli C. Corrigendum: 3D hydrogel environment rejuvenates aged pericytes for skeletal muscle tissue engineering. Front Physiol 2019; 10:199. [PMID: 30914966 PMCID: PMC6421511 DOI: 10.3389/fphys.2019.00199] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2019] [Accepted: 02/15/2019] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Claudia Fuoco
- Department of Biology, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy
| | | | | | | | - Benedetto Sacchetti
- Stem Cell Lab, Department of Molecular Medicine, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy
| | | | | | - Paolo Madeddu
- Experimental Cardiovascular Medicine, University of Bristol, Bristol, United Kingdom
| | - Gianni Cesareni
- Department of Biology, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Rome, Italy.,IRCCS Fondazione Santa Lucia, Rome, Italy
| | - Dror Seliktar
- Experimental Cardiovascular Medicine, University of Bristol, Bristol, United Kingdom.,Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Roberto Rizzi
- IRCCS MultiMedica, Milan, Italy.,Cell Biology and Neurobiology Institute, National Research Council of Italy (CNR), Rome, Italy
| | - Claudia Bearzi
- IRCCS MultiMedica, Milan, Italy.,Cell Biology and Neurobiology Institute, National Research Council of Italy (CNR), Rome, Italy
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23
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Schnabel‐Lubovsky M, Kossover O, Melino S, Nanni F, Talmon Y, Seliktar D. Visualizing cell‐laden fibrin‐based hydrogels using cryogenic scanning electron microscopy and confocal microscopy. J Tissue Eng Regen Med 2019; 13:587-598. [DOI: 10.1002/term.2813] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/04/2018] [Revised: 10/08/2018] [Accepted: 12/17/2018] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Maya Schnabel‐Lubovsky
- Department of Biomedical EngineeringTechnion—Israel Institute of Technology Haifa Israel
- Department of Chemical EngineeringTechnion—Israel Institute of Technology Haifa Israel
| | - Olga Kossover
- Department of Biomedical EngineeringTechnion—Israel Institute of Technology Haifa Israel
| | - Sonia Melino
- Department of Chemical Science and TechnologiesUniversity of Rome Tor Vergata Rome Italy
| | - Francesca Nanni
- Enterprise Engineering DepartmentUniversity of Rome Tor Vergata Rome Italy
- INSTMItalian Interuniversity Consortium on Materials Science and Technology 50121 Florence Italy
| | - Yeshayahu Talmon
- Department of Chemical EngineeringTechnion—Israel Institute of Technology Haifa Israel
- Russell Berrie Nanotechnology Institute (RBNI)Technion—Israel Institute of Technology Haifa Israel
| | - Dror Seliktar
- Department of Biomedical EngineeringTechnion—Israel Institute of Technology Haifa Israel
- Russell Berrie Nanotechnology Institute (RBNI)Technion—Israel Institute of Technology Haifa Israel
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24
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Loebel C, Ayoub A, Galarraga JH, Kossover O, Simaan-Yameen H, Seliktar D, Burdick JA. Tailoring supramolecular guest-host hydrogel viscoelasticity with covalent fibrinogen double networks. J Mater Chem B 2019; 7:1753-1760. [PMID: 32254917 DOI: 10.1039/c8tb02593b] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
Supramolecular chemistry has enabled the design of tunable biomaterials that mimic the dynamic and viscoelastic characteristics of the extracellular matrix. However, the noncovalent nature of supramolecular bonds renders them inherently weak, limiting their applicability to many biomedical applications. To address this, we formulated double network (DN) hydrogels through a combination of supramolecular and covalent networks to tailor hydrogel viscoelastic properties. Specifically, DN hydrogels were formed through the combination of supramolecular guest-host (GH) hyaluronic acid (HA) networks with covalent networks from the photocrosslinking of acrylated poly(ethylene glycol) modified fibrinogen (PEG-fibrinogen) and PEG diacrylate. DN hydrogels exhibited higher compressive moduli, increased failure stresses, and increased toughness when compared to purely covalent networks. While GH concentration had little influence on the compressive moduli across DN hydrogels, an increase in the GH concentration resulted in more viscous behavior of DN hydrogels. High viability of encapsulated bovine mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) was observed across groups with enhanced spreading and proliferation in DN hydrogels with increased GH concentration. This combination of supramolecular and covalent chemistries enables the formation of dynamic hydrogels with tunable properties that can be customized towards repair of viscoelastic tissues.
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Affiliation(s)
- Claudia Loebel
- Department of Bioengineering, University of Pennsylvania, 210 South 33rd Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.
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25
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Rufaihah AJ, Cheyyatraivendran S, Mazlan MDM, Lim K, Chong MSK, Mattar CNZ, Chan JKY, Kofidis T, Seliktar D. The Effect of Scaffold Modulus on the Morphology and Remodeling of Fetal Mesenchymal Stem Cells. Front Physiol 2018; 9:1555. [PMID: 30622472 PMCID: PMC6308149 DOI: 10.3389/fphys.2018.01555] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/16/2018] [Accepted: 10/17/2018] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Hydrogel materials have been successfully used as matrices to explore the role of biophysical and biochemical stimuli in directing stem cell behavior. Here, we present our findings on the role of modulus in guiding bone marrow fetal mesenchymal stem cell (BMfMSC) fate determination using semi-synthetic hydrogels made from PEG-fibrinogen (PF). The BMfMSCs were cultivated in the PF for up to 2 weeks to study the influence of matrix modulus (i.e., cross-linking density of the PF) on BMfMSC survival, morphology and integrin expression. Both two-dimensional (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) culture conditions were employed to examine the BMfMSCs as single cells or as cell spheroids. The hydrogel modulus affected the rate of BMfMSC metabolic activity, the integrin expression levels and the cell morphology, both as single cells and as spheroids. The cell seeding density was also found to be an important parameter of the system in that high densities were favorable in facilitating more cell-to-cell contacts that favored higher metabolic activity. Our findings provide important insight about design of a hydrogel scaffold that can be used to optimize the biological response of BMfMSCs for various tissue engineering applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Abdul Jalil Rufaihah
- Department of Surgery, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Suganya Cheyyatraivendran
- Department of Surgery, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Muhammad Danial Mohd Mazlan
- Department of Surgery, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Kenrich Lim
- Department of Surgery, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Mark Seow Khoon Chong
- Division of Bioengineering, School of Chemical and Biomedical Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, Singapore
| | | | - Jerry Kok Yen Chan
- Department of Obstretics and Gynaecology, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Theodoros Kofidis
- Department of Surgery, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore.,Department of Cardiac, Thoracic and Vascular Surgery, National University Heart Centre Singapore, National University Health System, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Dror Seliktar
- Nanoscience and Nanotechnology Initiative, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore.,Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
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26
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Aviv M, Halperin-Sternfeld M, Grigoriants I, Buzhansky L, Mironi-Harpaz I, Seliktar D, Einav S, Nevo Z, Adler-Abramovich L. Improving the Mechanical Rigidity of Hyaluronic Acid by Integration of a Supramolecular Peptide Matrix. ACS Appl Mater Interfaces 2018; 10:41883-41891. [PMID: 30211538 DOI: 10.1021/acsami.8b08423] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/09/2023]
Abstract
Hyaluronic acid (HA), a major component of the extracellular matrix, is an attractive material for various medical applications. Yet, its low mechanical rigidity and fast in vivo degradation hinder its utilization. Here, we demonstrate the reinforcement of HA by its integration with a low-molecular-weight peptide hydrogelator to produce a composite hydrogel. The formulation of HA with the fluorenylmethoxycarbonyl diphenylalanine (FmocFF) peptide, one of the most studied self-assembling hydrogel-forming building blocks, showing notable mechanical properties, resulted in the formation of stable, homogeneous hydrogels. Electron microscopy analysis demonstrated a uniform distribution of the two matrices in the composite forms. The composite hydrogels showed improved mechanical properties and stability to enzymatic degradation while maintaining their biocompatibility. Moreover, the storage modulus of the FmocFF/HA composite hydrogels reached up to 25 kPa. The composite hydrogels allowed sustained release of curcumin, a hydrophobic polyphenol showing antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and antitumor activities. Importantly, the rate of curcumin release was modulated as a function of the concentration of the FmocFF peptide within the hydrogel matrix. This work provides a new approach for conferring mechanical rigidity and stability to HA without the need of cross-linking, thus potentially facilitating its utilization in different clinical applications, such as sustained drug release.
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Affiliation(s)
- Moran Aviv
- School of Mechanical Engineering , Afeka Tel Aviv Academic College of Engineering , Tel Aviv 6910717 , Israel
| | | | | | | | - Iris Mironi-Harpaz
- Faculty of Biomedical Engineering , Technion-Israel Institute of Technology , Haifa 3200003 , Israel
| | - Dror Seliktar
- Faculty of Biomedical Engineering , Technion-Israel Institute of Technology , Haifa 3200003 , Israel
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27
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Berkovitch Y, Cohen T, Peled E, Schmidhammer R, Florian H, Teuschl AH, Wolbank S, Yelin D, Redl H, Seliktar D. Hydrogel composition and laser micropatterning to regulate sciatic nerve regeneration. J Tissue Eng Regen Med 2018; 12:1049-1061. [PMID: 29096406 DOI: 10.1002/term.2606] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/30/2017] [Revised: 09/14/2017] [Accepted: 10/23/2017] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Abstract
Treatment of peripheral nerve injuries has evolved over the past several decades to include the use of sophisticated new materials endowed with trophic and topographical cues that are essential for in vivo nerve fibre regeneration. In this research, we explored the use of an advanced design strategy for peripheral nerve repair, using biological and semi-synthetic hydrogels that enable controlled environmental stimuli to regenerate neurons and glial cells in a rat sciatic nerve resection model. The provisional nerve growth conduits were composed of either natural fibrin or adducts of synthetic polyethylene glycol and fibrinogen or gelatin. A photo-patterning technique was further applied to these 3D hydrogel biomaterials, in the form of laser-ablated microchannels, to provide contact guidance for unidirectional growth following sciatic nerve injury. We tested the regeneration capacity of subcritical nerve gap injuries in rats treated with photo-patterned materials and compared these with injuries treated with unpatterned hydrogels, either stiff or compliant. Among the factors tested were shear modulus, biological composition, and micropatterning of the materials. The microchannel guidance patterns, combined with appropriately matched degradation and stiffness properties of the material, proved most essential for the uniform tissue propagation during the nerve regeneration process.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yulia Berkovitch
- The Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel.,The Interdisciplinary Program for Biotechnology, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Talia Cohen
- The Faculty of Medicine, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Eli Peled
- The Faculty of Medicine, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel.,Orthopedic Surgery Division, Rambam Health Care Campus and The Bruce Rappaport Faculty of Medicine, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Robert Schmidhammer
- Ludwig Boltzmann Institute for Experimental and Clinical Traumatology, Austrian Cluster for Tissue Regeneration, Vienna, Austria
| | - Hildner Florian
- Ludwig Boltzmann Institute for Experimental and Clinical Traumatology, Austrian Cluster for Tissue Regeneration, Vienna, Austria
| | - Andreas H Teuschl
- Ludwig Boltzmann Institute for Experimental and Clinical Traumatology, Austrian Cluster for Tissue Regeneration, Vienna, Austria.,Department of Biochemical Engineering, University of Applied Sciences Technikum Wien, Vienna, Austria
| | - Susanne Wolbank
- Ludwig Boltzmann Institute for Experimental and Clinical Traumatology, Austrian Cluster for Tissue Regeneration, Vienna, Austria
| | - Dvir Yelin
- The Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Heinz Redl
- Ludwig Boltzmann Institute for Experimental and Clinical Traumatology, Austrian Cluster for Tissue Regeneration, Vienna, Austria
| | - Dror Seliktar
- The Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
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28
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Lev R, Seliktar D. Hydrogel biomaterials and their therapeutic potential for muscle injuries and muscular dystrophies. J R Soc Interface 2018; 15:20170380. [PMID: 29343633 PMCID: PMC5805959 DOI: 10.1098/rsif.2017.0380] [Citation(s) in RCA: 50] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/23/2017] [Accepted: 12/18/2017] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Muscular diseases such as muscular dystrophies and muscle injuries constitute a large group of ailments that manifest as muscle weakness, atrophy or fibrosis. Although cell therapy is a promising treatment option, the delivery and retention of cells in the muscle is difficult and prevents sustained regeneration needed for adequate functional improvements. Various types of biomaterials with different physical and chemical properties have been developed to improve the delivery of cells and/or growth factors for treating muscle injuries. Hydrogels are a family of materials with distinct advantages for use as cell delivery systems in muscle injuries and ailments, including their mild processing conditions, their similarities to natural tissue extracellular matrix, and their ability to be delivered with less invasive approaches. Moreover, hydrogels can be made to completely degrade in the body, leaving behind their biological payload in a process that can enhance the therapeutic process. For these reasons, hydrogels have shown great potential as cell delivery matrices. This paper reviews a few of the hydrogel systems currently being applied together with cell therapy and/or growth factor delivery to promote the therapeutic repair of muscle injuries and muscle wasting diseases such as muscular dystrophies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rachel Lev
- Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Technion City, Haifa 32000, Israel
| | - Dror Seliktar
- Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Technion City, Haifa 32000, Israel
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29
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Goldshmid R, Seliktar D. Hydrogel Modulus Affects Proliferation Rate and Pluripotency of Human Mesenchymal Stem Cells Grown in Three-Dimensional Culture. ACS Biomater Sci Eng 2017; 3:3433-3446. [DOI: 10.1021/acsbiomaterials.7b00266] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Revital Goldshmid
- The
Faculty of Biomedical Engineering and ‡The Interdisciplinary Program for
Biotechnology, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa 32000, Israel
| | - Dror Seliktar
- The
Faculty of Biomedical Engineering and ‡The Interdisciplinary Program for
Biotechnology, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa 32000, Israel
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30
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Xu R, Dagnaes-Hansen F, Wogensen L, Axelsen SM, Seliktar D, Chen M. Fibrogenic and angiogenic commitments of human induced pluripotent stem cells derived mesenchymal stem cells in connective tissue growth factor-delivering scaffold in an immune-deficient mice model. J Biomed Mater Res B Appl Biomater 2017; 106:2266-2274. [DOI: 10.1002/jbm.b.34030] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2017] [Revised: 08/17/2017] [Accepted: 09/24/2017] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Ruodan Xu
- Department of Engineering; Aarhus University; Aarhus C Denmark
| | | | - Lise Wogensen
- Research Laboratory of Biochemical Pathology; The Institute of Clinical Medicine, Health, Aarhus University; Aarhus C Denmark
| | | | - Dror Seliktar
- The Russell Berrie Nanotechnology Institute, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology; Haifa Israel
| | - Menglin Chen
- Department of Engineering; Aarhus University; Aarhus C Denmark
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31
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Costantini M, Testa S, Mozetic P, Barbetta A, Fuoco C, Fornetti E, Tamiro F, Bernardini S, Jaroszewicz J, Święszkowski W, Trombetta M, Castagnoli L, Seliktar D, Garstecki P, Cesareni G, Cannata S, Rainer A, Gargioli C. Microfluidic-enhanced 3D bioprinting of aligned myoblast-laden hydrogels leads to functionally organized myofibers in vitro and in vivo. Biomaterials 2017; 131:98-110. [DOI: 10.1016/j.biomaterials.2017.03.026] [Citation(s) in RCA: 155] [Impact Index Per Article: 22.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/16/2016] [Revised: 03/13/2017] [Accepted: 03/20/2017] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
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Testa S, Costantini M, Fornetti E, Bernardini S, Trombetta M, Seliktar D, Cannata S, Rainer A, Gargioli C. Combination of biochemical and mechanical cues for tendon tissue engineering. J Cell Mol Med 2017; 21:2711-2719. [PMID: 28470843 PMCID: PMC5661263 DOI: 10.1111/jcmm.13186] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2016] [Accepted: 02/20/2017] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Tendinopathies negatively affect the life quality of millions of people in occupational and athletic settings, as well as the general population. Tendon healing is a slow process, often with insufficient results to restore complete endurance and functionality of the tissue. Tissue engineering, using tendon progenitors, artificial matrices and bioreactors for mechanical stimulation, could be an important approach for treating rips, fraying and tissue rupture. In our work, C3H10T1/2 murine fibroblast cell line was exposed to a combination of stimuli: a biochemical stimulus provided by Transforming Growth Factor Beta (TGF-β) and Ascorbic Acid (AA); a three-dimensional environment represented by PEGylated-Fibrinogen (PEG-Fibrinogen) biomimetic matrix; and a mechanical induction exploiting a custom bioreactor applying uniaxial stretching. In vitro analyses by immunofluorescence and mechanical testing revealed that the proposed combined approach favours the organization of a three-dimensional tissue-like structure promoting a remarkable arrangement of the cells and the neo-extracellular matrix, reflecting into enhanced mechanical strength. The proposed method represents a novel approach for tendon tissue engineering, demonstrating how the combined effect of biochemical and mechanical stimuli ameliorates biological and mechanical properties of the artificial tissue compared to those obtained with single inducement.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefano Testa
- Department of Biology, Tor Vergata Rome University, Rome, Italy
| | - Marco Costantini
- Department of Engineering, Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma, Rome, Italy
| | | | | | - Marcella Trombetta
- Department of Engineering, Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma, Rome, Italy
| | - Dror Seliktar
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Techion Institute, Haifa, Israel
| | - Stefano Cannata
- Department of Biology, Tor Vergata Rome University, Rome, Italy
| | - Alberto Rainer
- Department of Engineering, Università Campus Bio-Medico di Roma, Rome, Italy
| | - Cesare Gargioli
- Department of Biology, Tor Vergata Rome University, Rome, Italy
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Berkovitch Y, Seliktar D. Semi-synthetic hydrogel composition and stiffness regulate neuronal morphogenesis. Int J Pharm 2017; 523:545-555. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpharm.2016.11.032] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/08/2016] [Revised: 11/08/2016] [Accepted: 11/10/2016] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
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Rufaihah AJ, Johari NA, Vaibavi SR, Plotkin M, Di Thien DT, Kofidis T, Seliktar D. Dual delivery of VEGF and ANG-1 in ischemic hearts using an injectable hydrogel. Acta Biomater 2017; 48:58-67. [PMID: 27756647 DOI: 10.1016/j.actbio.2016.10.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 52] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/06/2016] [Revised: 10/10/2016] [Accepted: 10/10/2016] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
Acute myocardial infarction (MI) caused by ischemia is the most common cause of cardiac dysfunction. While growth factor therapy is promising, the retention in the highly vascularized myocardium is limited and prevents sustained activation needed for adequate cellular responses. Here, we demonstrated the use of polyethylene glycol-fibrinogen (PF) hydrogels for sustained dual delivery of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and angiopoietin-1 (ANG-1) to enhance myocardial repair and function. VEGF and ANG-1 were incorporated in PF hydrogels and their in vitro characteristics were studied. Acute MI was generated in a rodent model with rats randomly assigned to 4 groups; sham, saline, PF and PF-VEGF-ANG1 (n=10 each group). Saline or hydrogel was injected in infarct and peri-infarct areas of the myocardium. After 4weeks, myocardial function was assessed using echocardiography. Tissue samples were harvested for Hematoxylin and Eosin, Masson Trichrome and capillary staining to assess the extent of fibrotic scar and arteriogenesis. Both VEGF and ANG-1 were released in a sustained and controlled manner over 30days. PF-VEGF-ANG1 treated animals showed the best improvement in cardiac function, highest degree of cardiac muscle preservation, and arteriogenesis. This study demonstrates that PF hydrogels can simultaneously provide mechanical support to attenuate adverse myocardial remodelling, and a pro-angiogenic benefit from the sustained VEGF and ANG1 delivery that culminates in a restorative effect following MI. The utility of this synergistic, biomaterial-based growth factor delivery may have clinical implications in the prevention of post-MI cardiac dysfunction. STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE Acute myocardial infarction (MI) caused by ischemia is the most common cause of cardiac dysfunction. Here, we demonstrated the use of polyethylene glycol-fibrinogen (PF) hydrogels for sustained dual delivery of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and angiopoietin-1 (ANG-1) to enhance myocardial repair and function. Treated animals showed the best improvement in cardiac function, highest degree of cardiac muscle preservation, and arteriogenesis. This study demonstrates that PF hydrogels can simultaneously provide mechanical support to attenuate adverse myocardial remodelling, and a pro-angiogenic benefit from the sustained VEGF and ANG1 delivery that culminates in a restorative effect following MI.
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Pradhan S, Clary JM, Seliktar D, Lipke EA. A three-dimensional spheroidal cancer model based on PEG-fibrinogen hydrogel microspheres. Biomaterials 2016; 115:141-154. [PMID: 27889665 DOI: 10.1016/j.biomaterials.2016.10.052] [Citation(s) in RCA: 90] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/09/2016] [Revised: 10/26/2016] [Accepted: 10/29/2016] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
Three-dimensional (3D) in vitro cancer models offer an attractive approach towards the investigation of tumorigenic phenomena and other cancer studies by providing dimensional context and higher degree of physiological relevance than that offered by conventional two-dimensional (2D) models. The multicellular tumor spheroid model, formed by cell aggregation, is considered to be the "gold standard" for 3D cancer models, due to its ease and simplicity of use. Although better than 2D models, tumor spheroids are unable to replicate key features of the native tumor microenvironment, particularly due to a lack of surrounding extracellular matrix components and heterogeneity in shape, size and aggregate forming tendencies. In order to address this issue, we have developed a 3D "tumor microsphere" model, formed by a dual-photoinitiator, aqueous-oil emulsion technique, for the encapsulation of cancer cells within PEG-fibrinogen hydrogel microspheres and for subsequent long-term 3D culture. In comparison to self-aggregated tumor spheroids, the tumor microspheres displayed a higher degree of size and shape homogeneity throughout long-term culture. In sharp contrast to cells in tumor spheroids, cells within tumor microspheres demonstrated significant loss in apico-basal polarity and cellular architecture, cellular and nuclear atypia, increased disorganization, elevated nuclear cytoplasmic ratio and nuclear volume density and reduction in cell-cell junction length, all of which are hallmarks of malignant transformation and tumorigenic progression. Additionally, the tumor microsphere model was extended for the 3D encapsulation and maintenance of a wide range of other cancer cell (metastatic and non-metastatic) types. Taken together, our results reinforce the importance of incorporating a biomimetic matrix in the cellular microenvironment of 3D tumor models and the influential effects of the matrix on the tumorigenic morphology of 3D cultured cells. The tumor microsphere system established in this study has the potential to be used in future investigations of 3D cancer cell-cell and cell-ECM interactions and in drug-testing applications.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shantanu Pradhan
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Auburn University, Auburn, AL 36849, USA
| | - Jacob M Clary
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Auburn University, Auburn, AL 36849, USA
| | - Dror Seliktar
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa 32000, Israel
| | - Elizabeth A Lipke
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Auburn University, Auburn, AL 36849, USA.
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Sarig U, Sarig H, de-Berardinis E, Chaw SY, Nguyen EB, Ramanujam VS, Thang VD, Al-Haddawi M, Liao S, Seliktar D, Kofidis T, Boey FY, Venkatraman SS, Machluf M. Natural myocardial ECM patch drives cardiac progenitor based restoration even after scarring. Acta Biomater 2016; 44:209-220. [PMID: 27545814 DOI: 10.1016/j.actbio.2016.08.031] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/28/2016] [Revised: 08/16/2016] [Accepted: 08/17/2016] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE To evaluate the regenerative capacity of non-supplemented and bioactive patches made of decellularized porcine cardiac extracellular matrix (pcECM) and characterize the biological key factors involved in possible cardiac function (CF) restoration following acute and 8weeks chronic MI. BACKGROUND pcECM is a key natural biomaterial that can affect cardiac regeneration following myocardial infarction (MI), through mechanisms, which are still not clearly understood. METHODS Wistar rats underwent MI and received pcECM patch (pcECM-P) treatment in either acute or chronic inflammatory phases. Treated, sham operated (no MI), and control (MI without treatment) animals, were compared through echocardiography, hemodynamics, pathological evaluation and analyses of various mRNA and protein level markers. RESULTS Our results show that in both acute and long-term chronic MI models, pcECM promotes significant cardiac function improvement, which is correlated to progenitor (GATA4(+), c-kit(+)) and myocyte (MYLC(+), TRPI(+)) recruitment. Interestingly, recruited progenitors, isolated using laser capture microdissection (LCM), expressed both early and late cardiomyocyte (CM) differentiation markers, suggesting differentiation towards the CM lineage. Recruited CM-like cells organized in a partially striated and immature muscle fiber arrangement that presented connexin43 -a crucial mediator of cardiac electrical conductivity. Concomitantly, pcECM was rapidly vascularized, and induced a constructive remodeling process as indicated by increased M2/M1 macrophage phenotypic ratio and pathological evaluation. CONCLUSIONS Acellular pcECM patch implants alone, i.e., without added biologics, are bioactive, and exert potent efficacy, stimulating biological regenerative processes that cooperatively lead to a cardiac progenitor-based restoration of function, even after scar tissue had already formed. STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE MI ('heart attack') remains the leading cause of heart failure and death in developed-countries. Restoration of cardiac function requires active turnover of damaged heart contracting cells (CM), however, CM endogenous regeneration is not efficient and is a matter of controversy. We show that a bioactive biomaterial alone-decellularized heart tissue (pcECM)-without added cells or growth factors, can elicit a complex regenerative response even after irreversible scarring. The pcECM patch induces macrophage polarization towards constructive remodeling and cardiomyocyte progenitor cell (GATA4(+), c-kit(+)) recruitment (evidenced at both mRNA and protein levels) resulting in de novo immature striated-like muscle patterns (MLC(+), TrpI(+), connexin43(+)). We, therefore, suggest this bioactive pcECM can model cardiac regeneration, and serve as a candidate for fast-track clinical application.
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Weitzenfeld P, Kossover O, Körner C, Meshel T, Wiemann S, Seliktar D, Legler DF, Ben-Baruch A. Chemokine axes in breast cancer: factors of the tumor microenvironment reshape the CCR7-driven metastatic spread of luminal-A breast tumors. J Leukoc Biol 2016; 99:1009-25. [PMID: 26936935 DOI: 10.1189/jlb.3ma0815-373r] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2015] [Accepted: 02/04/2016] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Chemokine axes have been shown to mediate site-specific metastasis in breast cancer, but their relevance to different subtypes has been hardly addressed. Here, with the focus on the CCR7-CCL21 axis, patient datasets demonstrated that luminal-A tumors express relatively low CCR7 levels compared with more aggressive disease subtypes. Furthermore, lymph node metastasis was not associated with high CCR7 levels in luminal-A patients. The metastatic pattern of luminal-A breast tumors may be influenced by the way luminal-A tumor cells interpret signals provided by factors of the primary tumor microenvironment. Thus, CCR7-expressing human luminal-A cells were stimulated simultaneously by factors representing 3 tumor microenvironment arms typical of luminal-A tumors, hormonal, inflammatory, and growth stimulating: estrogen + TNF-α + epidermal growth factor. Such tumor microenvironment stimulation down-regulated the migration of CCR7-expressing tumor cells toward CCL21 and inhibited the formation of directional protrusions toward CCL21 in a novel 3-dimensional hydrogel system. CCL21-induced migration of CCR7-expressing tumor cells depended on PI3K and MAPK activation; however, when CCR7-expressing cancer cells were prestimulated by tumor microenvironment factors, CCL21 could not effectively activate these signaling pathways. In vivo, pre-exposure of the tumor cells to tumor microenvironment factors has put restraints on CCL21-mediated lymph node-homing cues and shifted the metastatic pattern of CCR7-expressing cells to the aggressive phenotype of dissemination to bones. Several of the aspects were also studied in the CXCR4-CXCL12 system, demonstrating similar patient and in vitro findings. Thus, we provide novel evidence to subtype-specific regulation of the CCR7-CCL21 axis, with more general implications to chemokine-dependent patterns of metastatic spread, revealing differential regulation in the luminal-A subtype.
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Affiliation(s)
- Polina Weitzenfeld
- Department of Cell Research and Immunology, George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Olga Kossover
- Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Cindy Körner
- Division of Molecular Genome Analysis, German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany; and
| | - Tsipi Meshel
- Department of Cell Research and Immunology, George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Stefan Wiemann
- Division of Molecular Genome Analysis, German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany; and
| | - Dror Seliktar
- Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Daniel F Legler
- Biotechnology Institute Thurgau at the University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany
| | - Adit Ben-Baruch
- Department of Cell Research and Immunology, George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel;
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Mauretti A, Neri A, Kossover O, Seliktar D, Nardo PD, Melino S. Design of a Novel Composite H2 S-Releasing Hydrogel for Cardiac Tissue Repair. Macromol Biosci 2016; 16:847-58. [PMID: 26857526 DOI: 10.1002/mabi.201500430] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/20/2015] [Revised: 01/12/2016] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
The design of 3D scaffolds is a crucial step in the field of regenerative medicine. Scaffolds should be degradable and bioresorbable as well as display good porosity, interconnecting pores, and topographic features; these properties favour tissue integration and vascularization. These requirements could be fulfilled by hybrid hydrogels using a combination of natural and synthetic components. Here, the mechanical and biological properties of a polyethylene glycol-fibrinogen hydrogel (PFHy) are improved in order to favour the proliferation and differentiation of human Sca-1(pos) cardiac progenitor cells (hCPCs). PFHys are modified by embedding air- or perfluorohexane-filled bovine serum albumin microbubbles (MBs) and characterized. Changes in cell morphology are observed in MBs-PFHys, suggesting that MBs could enhance the formation of bundles of cells and influence the direction of the spindle growth. The properties of MBs as carriers of active macromolecules are also exploited. For the first time, enzyme-coated MBs have been used as systems for the production of hydrogen sulfide (H2 S)-releasing scaffolds. Novel H2 S-releasing PFHys are produced, which are able to improve the growth of hCPCs. This novel 3D cell-scaffold system will allow the assessment of the effects of H2 S on the cardiac muscle regeneration with its potential applications in tissue repair.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arianna Mauretti
- Department of Sciences and Chemical Technologies, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Via della Ricerca Scientifica, 00133, Rome, Italy
| | - Annalisa Neri
- Department of Sciences and Chemical Technologies, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Via della Ricerca Scientifica, 00133, Rome, Italy
| | - Olga Kossover
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, 32000, Israel
| | - Dror Seliktar
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, 32000, Israel
| | - Paolo Di Nardo
- Department of Clinical Sciences and Translational Medicine, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Via Montpellier 1, 00133, Rome, Italy
| | - Sonia Melino
- Department of Sciences and Chemical Technologies, University of Rome Tor Vergata, Via della Ricerca Scientifica, 00133, Rome, Italy
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Abstract
Acute myocardial infarction (MI) caused by ischemia is the most common cause of cardiac dysfunction. While growth factor or cell therapy is promising, the retention of bioactive agents in the highly vascularized myocardium is limited and prevents sustained activation needed for adequate cellular responses. Various types of biomaterials with different physical and chemical properties have been developed to improve the localized delivery of growth factor and/or cells for therapeutic angiogenesis in ischemic tissues. Hydrogels are particularly advantageous as carrier systems because they are structurally similar to the tissue extracellular matrix (ECM), they can be processed under relatively mild conditions and can be delivered in a minimally invasive manner. Moreover, hydrogels can be designed to degrade in a timely fashion that coincides with the angiogenic process. For these reasons, hydrogels have shown great potential as pro-angiogenic matrices. This paper reviews a few of the hydrogel systems currently being applied together with growth factor delivery and/or cell therapy to promote therapeutic angiogenesis in ischemic tissues, with emphasis on myocardial applications.
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Fuoco C, Rizzi R, Biondo A, Longa E, Mascaro A, Shapira-Schweitzer K, Kossovar O, Benedetti S, Salvatori ML, Santoleri S, Testa S, Bernardini S, Bottinelli R, Bearzi C, Cannata SM, Seliktar D, Cossu G, Gargioli C. In vivo generation of a mature and functional artificial skeletal muscle. EMBO Mol Med 2015; 7:411-22. [PMID: 25715804 PMCID: PMC4403043 DOI: 10.15252/emmm.201404062] [Citation(s) in RCA: 68] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Extensive loss of skeletal muscle tissue results in mutilations and severe loss of function. In vitro-generated artificial muscles undergo necrosis when transplanted in vivo before host angiogenesis may provide oxygen for fibre survival. Here, we report a novel strategy based upon the use of mouse or human mesoangioblasts encapsulated inside PEG-fibrinogen hydrogel. Once engineered to express placental-derived growth factor, mesoangioblasts attract host vessels and nerves, contributing to in vivo survival and maturation of newly formed myofibres. When the graft was implanted underneath the skin on the surface of the tibialis anterior, mature and aligned myofibres formed within several weeks as a complete and functional extra muscle. Moreover, replacing the ablated tibialis anterior with PEG-fibrinogen-embedded mesoangioblasts also resulted in an artificial muscle very similar to a normal tibialis anterior. This strategy opens the possibility for patient-specific muscle creation for a large number of pathological conditions involving muscle tissue wasting.
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Affiliation(s)
- Claudia Fuoco
- Department of Biology, Tor Vergata Rome University, Rome, Italy
| | - Roberto Rizzi
- IRCCS MultiMedica, Milan, Italy Cell Biology and Neurobiology Institute, National Research Council of Italy, Rome, Italy
| | | | - Emanuela Longa
- Department of Molecular Medicine and Interdepartmental Centre for Research in Sport Biology and Medicine, University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy
| | - Anna Mascaro
- Department of Molecular Medicine and Interdepartmental Centre for Research in Sport Biology and Medicine, University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy
| | | | - Olga Kossovar
- Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Sara Benedetti
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University College London, London, UK
| | | | | | - Stefano Testa
- Department of Biology, Tor Vergata Rome University, Rome, Italy
| | | | - Roberto Bottinelli
- Department of Molecular Medicine and Interdepartmental Centre for Research in Sport Biology and Medicine, University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy Fondazione Salvatore Maugeri (IRCCS), Scientific Institute of Pavia, Pavia, Italy
| | - Claudia Bearzi
- IRCCS MultiMedica, Milan, Italy Cell Biology and Neurobiology Institute, National Research Council of Italy, Rome, Italy
| | | | - Dror Seliktar
- Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Giulio Cossu
- Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, University College London, London, UK Institute of Inflammation and Repair, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK
| | - Cesare Gargioli
- Department of Biology, Tor Vergata Rome University, Rome, Italy IRCCS MultiMedica, Milan, Italy
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Kerscher P, Turnbull IC, Hodge AJ, Kim J, Seliktar D, Easley CJ, Costa KD, Lipke EA. Direct hydrogel encapsulation of pluripotent stem cells enables ontomimetic differentiation and growth of engineered human heart tissues. Biomaterials 2015; 83:383-95. [PMID: 26826618 DOI: 10.1016/j.biomaterials.2015.12.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 63] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2015] [Revised: 12/09/2015] [Accepted: 12/13/2015] [Indexed: 01/05/2023]
Abstract
Human engineered heart tissues have potential to revolutionize cardiac development research, drug-testing, and treatment of heart disease; however, implementation is limited by the need to use pre-differentiated cardiomyocytes (CMs). Here we show that by providing a 3D poly(ethylene glycol)-fibrinogen hydrogel microenvironment, we can directly differentiate human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs) into contracting heart tissues. Our straight-forward, ontomimetic approach, imitating the process of development, requires only a single cell-handling step, provides reproducible results for a range of tested geometries and size scales, and overcomes inherent limitations in cell maintenance and maturation, while achieving high yields of CMs with developmentally appropriate temporal changes in gene expression. We demonstrate that hPSCs encapsulated within this biomimetic 3D hydrogel microenvironment develop into functional cardiac tissues composed of self-aligned CMs with evidence of ultrastructural maturation, mimicking heart development, and enabling investigation of disease mechanisms and screening of compounds on developing human heart tissue.
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Affiliation(s)
- Petra Kerscher
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Auburn University, AL, USA
| | - Irene C Turnbull
- Cardiovascular Research Center, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | | | - Joonyul Kim
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Auburn University, AL, USA
| | - Dror Seliktar
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | | | - Kevin D Costa
- Cardiovascular Research Center, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
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de la Cueva-Méndez G, Seliktar D. Editorial overview: Pharmaceutical biotechnology: Expanding horizons for pharmaceutical biotechnology in industry and academia. Curr Opin Biotechnol 2015; 35:iv-vi. [DOI: 10.1016/j.copbio.2015.09.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
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Goldshmid R, Cohen S, Shachaf Y, Kupershmit I, Sarig-Nadir O, Seliktar D, Wechsler R. Steric Interference of Adhesion Supports In-Vitro Chondrogenesis of Mesenchymal Stem Cells on Hydrogels for Cartilage Repair. Sci Rep 2015; 5:12607. [PMID: 26411496 PMCID: PMC4585928 DOI: 10.1038/srep12607] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/29/2014] [Accepted: 06/11/2015] [Indexed: 02/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Recent studies suggest the presence of cell adhesion motifs found in structural proteins can inhibit chondrogenesis. In this context, the current study aims to determine if a polyethylene glycol (PEG)-modified fibrinogen matrix could support better chondrogenesis of human bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BM-MSC) based on steric interference of adhesion, when compared to a natural fibrin matrix. Hydrogels used as substrates for two-dimensional (2D) BM-MSC cultures under chondrogenic conditions were made from cross-linked PEG-fibrinogen (PF) and compared to thrombin-activated fibrin. Cell morphology, protein expression, DNA and sulfated proteoglycan (GAG) content were correlated to substrate properties such as stiffness and adhesiveness. Cell aggregation and chondrogenic markers, including collagen II and aggrecan, were observed on all PF substrates but not on fibrin. Shielding fibrinogen's adhesion domains and increasing stiffness of the material are likely contributing factors that cause the BM-MSCs to display a more chondrogenic phenotype. One composition of PF corresponding to GelrinC™--a product cleared in the EU for cartilage repair--was found to be optimal for supporting chondrogenic differentiation of BM-MSC while minimizing hypertrophy (collagen X). These findings suggest that semi-synthetic biomaterials based on ECM proteins can be designed to favourably affect BM-MSC towards repair processes involving chondrogenesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Revital Goldshmid
- The Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa 32000, Israel
| | | | | | | | | | - Dror Seliktar
- The Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa 32000, Israel
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Goldshmid R, Mironi-Harpaz I, Shachaf Y, Seliktar D. A method for preparation of hydrogel microcapsules for stem cell bioprocessing and stem cell therapy. Methods 2015; 84:35-43. [PMID: 25931428 DOI: 10.1016/j.ymeth.2015.04.027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/11/2014] [Revised: 04/20/2015] [Accepted: 04/21/2015] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
A method for the preparation of suspension culture microcapsules used in the bioprocessing of human mesenchymal stem cells (hMSCs) is reported. The microcapsules are prepared from a semi-synthetic hydrogel comprising Pluronic®F127 conjugated to denatured fibrinogen. The Pluronic-fibrinogen adducts display a lower critical solubility temperature (LCST) at ∼30 °C, thus enabling mild, cell-compatible physical crosslinking of the microcapsules in a warm gelation bath. Cell-laden microgels were prepared from a solution of Pluronic-fibrinogen hydrogel precursor and hMSCs; these were cultivated for up to 15 days in laboratory-scale suspension bioreactors and harvested by reducing the temperature of the microcapsules to disassemble the physical polymer network. The viability, proliferation and cell recovery yields of the hMSCs were shown to be better than photo-chemically crosslinked microcapsules made from a similar material. The cell culture yields, which exceeded 300% after 15 days in suspension culture, were comparable to other microcarrier systems used for the mass production of hMSCs. The simplicity of this methodology, both in terms of the cell inoculation and mild recovery conditions, represent distinct advantages for stem cell bioprocessing with suspension culture bioreactors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Revital Goldshmid
- The Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa 32000, Israel; The Interdisciplinary Program for Biotechnology, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa 32000, Israel
| | - Iris Mironi-Harpaz
- The Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa 32000, Israel
| | - Yonatan Shachaf
- The Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa 32000, Israel
| | - Dror Seliktar
- The Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa 32000, Israel.
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Mironi-Harpaz I, Hazanov L, Engel G, Yelin D, Seliktar D. In-situ architectures designed in 3D cell-laden hydrogels using microscopic laser photolithography. Adv Mater 2015; 27:1933-1938. [PMID: 25655567 DOI: 10.1002/adma.201404185] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/10/2014] [Revised: 01/08/2015] [Indexed: 06/04/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Iris Mironi-Harpaz
- Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Technion - Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, 32000, Israel
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Lee BH, Kim MH, Lee JH, Seliktar D, Cho NJ, Tan LP. Modulation of Huh7.5 spheroid formation and functionality using modified PEG-based hydrogels of different stiffness. PLoS One 2015; 10:e0118123. [PMID: 25692976 PMCID: PMC4333219 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0118123] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/04/2014] [Accepted: 01/05/2015] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Physical cues, such as cell microenvironment stiffness, are known to be important factors in modulating cellular behaviors such as differentiation, viability, and proliferation. Apart from being able to trigger these effects, mechanical stiffness tuning is a very convenient approach that could be implemented readily into smart scaffold designs. In this study, fibrinogen-modified poly(ethylene glycol)-diacrylate (PEG-DA) based hydrogels with tunable mechanical properties were synthesized and applied to control the spheroid formation and liver-like function of encapsulated Huh7.5 cells in an engineered, three-dimensional liver tissue model. By controlling hydrogel stiffness (0.1–6 kPa) as a cue for mechanotransduction representing different stiffness of a normal liver and a diseased cirrhotic liver, spheroids ranging from 50 to 200 μm were formed over a three week time-span. Hydrogels with better compliance (i.e. lower stiffness) promoted formation of larger spheroids. The highest rates of cell proliferation, albumin secretion, and CYP450 expression were all observed for spheroids in less stiff hydrogels like a normal liver in a healthy state. We also identified that the hydrogel modification by incorporation of PEGylated-fibrinogen within the hydrogel matrix enhanced cell survival and functionality possibly owing to more binding of autocrine fibronectin. Taken together, our findings establish guidelines to control the formation of Huh7.5 cell spheroids in modified PEGDA based hydrogels. These spheroids may serve as models for applications such as screening of pharmacological drug candidates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bae Hoon Lee
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Myung Hee Kim
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Jae Ho Lee
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Dror Seliktar
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Technion—Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa, Israel
| | - Nam-Joon Cho
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, Singapore
- * E-mail: (NJC); (LPT)
| | - Lay Poh Tan
- School of Materials Science and Engineering, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, Singapore
- * E-mail: (NJC); (LPT)
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Xu R, Taskin MB, Rubert M, Seliktar D, Besenbacher F, Chen M. hiPS-MSCs differentiation towards fibroblasts on a 3D ECM mimicking scaffold. Sci Rep 2015; 5:8480. [PMID: 25684543 PMCID: PMC4329554 DOI: 10.1038/srep08480] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/02/2014] [Accepted: 01/22/2015] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Fibroblasts are ubiquitous cells that constitute the stroma of virtually all tissues and play vital roles in homeostasis. The poor innate healing capacity of fibroblastic tissues is attributed to the scarcity of fibroblasts as collagen-producing cells. In this study, we have developed a functional ECM mimicking scaffold that is capable to supply spatial allocation of stem cells as well as anchorage and storage of growth factors (GFs) to direct stem cells differentiate towards fibroblasts. Electrospun PCL fibers were embedded in a PEG-fibrinogen (PF) hydrogel, which was infiltrated with connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) to form the 3D nanocomposite PFP-C. The human induced pluripotent stem cells derived mesenchymal stem cells (hiPS-MSCs) with an advance in growth over adult MSCs were applied to validate the fibrogenic capacity of the 3D nanocomposite scaffold. The PFP-C scaffold was found not only biocompatible with the hiPS-MSCs, but also presented intriguingly strong fibroblastic commitments, to an extent comparable to the positive control, tissue culture plastic surfaces (TCP) timely refreshed with 100% CTGF. The novel scaffold presented not only biomimetic ECM nanostructures for homing stem cells, but also sufficient cell-approachable bio-signaling cues, which may synergistically facilitate the control of stem cell fates for regenerative therapies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ruodan Xu
- interdisciplinary Nanoscience Center (iNANO), Aarhus University, Gustav Wieds Vej 14, 8000 Aarhus C, Denmark
| | - Mehmet Berat Taskin
- interdisciplinary Nanoscience Center (iNANO), Aarhus University, Gustav Wieds Vej 14, 8000 Aarhus C, Denmark
| | - Marina Rubert
- interdisciplinary Nanoscience Center (iNANO), Aarhus University, Gustav Wieds Vej 14, 8000 Aarhus C, Denmark
| | - Dror Seliktar
- Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa 32000, Israel
- The Russell Berrie Nanotechnology Institute, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa 32000, Israel
| | - Flemming Besenbacher
- interdisciplinary Nanoscience Center (iNANO), Aarhus University, Gustav Wieds Vej 14, 8000 Aarhus C, Denmark
| | - Menglin Chen
- interdisciplinary Nanoscience Center (iNANO), Aarhus University, Gustav Wieds Vej 14, 8000 Aarhus C, Denmark
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Navaro Y, Bleich-Kimelman N, Hazanov L, Mironi-Harpaz I, Shachaf Y, Garty S, Smith Y, Pelled G, Gazit D, Seliktar D, Gazit Z. Matrix stiffness determines the fate of nucleus pulposus-derived stem cells. Biomaterials 2015; 49:68-76. [PMID: 25725556 DOI: 10.1016/j.biomaterials.2015.01.021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 53] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/17/2014] [Revised: 01/01/2015] [Accepted: 01/20/2015] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
Intervertebral disc (IVD) degeneration and consequent low-back pain present a major medical challenge. Nucleus pulposus-derived stem cells (NP-SCs) may lead to a novel therapy for this severe disease. It was recently shown that survival and function of mature NP cells are regulated in part by tissue stiffness. We hypothesized that modification of matrix stiffness will influence the ability of cultured NP-SCs to proliferate, survive, and differentiate into mature NP cells. NP-SCs were subcultured in three-dimensional matrices of varying degrees of stiffness as measured by the material's shear storage modulus. Cell survival, activity, and rate of differentiation toward the chondrogenic or osteogenic lineage were analyzed. NP-SCs were found to proliferate and differentiate in all matrices, irrespective of matrix stiffness. However, matrices with a low shear storage modulus (G' = 1 kPa) promoted significantly more proliferation and chondrogenic differentiation, whereas matrices with a high modulus (G' = 2 kPa) promoted osteogenic differentiation. Imaging performed via confocal and scanning electron microscopes validated cell survival and highlighted stiffness-dependent cell-matrix interactions. These results underscore the effect of the matrix modulus on the fate of NP-SCs. This research may facilitate elucidation of the complex cross-talk between NP-SCs and their surrounding matrix in healthy as well as pathological conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yosi Navaro
- Skeletal Biotech Laboratory, The Hebrew University-Hadassah Faculty of Dental Medicine, Ein Kerem, Jerusalem 91120, Israel
| | - Nadav Bleich-Kimelman
- Skeletal Biotech Laboratory, The Hebrew University-Hadassah Faculty of Dental Medicine, Ein Kerem, Jerusalem 91120, Israel
| | - Lena Hazanov
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa 32000, Israel
| | - Iris Mironi-Harpaz
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa 32000, Israel
| | - Yonatan Shachaf
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa 32000, Israel
| | - Shai Garty
- Department of Molecular Cell Biology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 76100, Israel; Max Planck Institute for Intelligent Systems, Stuttgart, Germany
| | - Yoav Smith
- Genomic Data Analysis Unit, The Hebrew University-Hadassah Medical School, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem 91120, Israel
| | - Gadi Pelled
- Skeletal Biotech Laboratory, The Hebrew University-Hadassah Faculty of Dental Medicine, Ein Kerem, Jerusalem 91120, Israel; Department of Surgery, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA; Board of Governors Regenerative Medicine Institute, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
| | - Dan Gazit
- Skeletal Biotech Laboratory, The Hebrew University-Hadassah Faculty of Dental Medicine, Ein Kerem, Jerusalem 91120, Israel; Department of Surgery, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA; Board of Governors Regenerative Medicine Institute, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA
| | - Dror Seliktar
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Technion-Israel Institute of Technology, Haifa 32000, Israel
| | - Zulma Gazit
- Skeletal Biotech Laboratory, The Hebrew University-Hadassah Faculty of Dental Medicine, Ein Kerem, Jerusalem 91120, Israel; Department of Surgery, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA; Board of Governors Regenerative Medicine Institute, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Los Angeles, CA 90048, USA.
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