Tissue Engineering In article number 2207882, Ryan Y. Nguyen, Michael Mak, and co-workers report the fabrication of collagen I hydrogels with topology that mimics complex extracellular matrix architectures in tissues. The generated mesoscopic features, termed islands, are tunable modulate bulk hydrogel mechanical properties. Collagen islands can stem cell behavior differentiation. This method p...

Background: lumbar disc degeneration is a multifactorial degenerative disease which is affected by genetic inheritance and environmental factors. Type XI collagen is important for organization of the extracellular matrix and cartilage collagen construction. Rs1676486 is a SNP that causes the conversion of C-T, resulting in a change in the expression of the collagen 11 alpha chain. The T allele ...

Contact of various cells with extracellular matrix molecules modulates their cellular functions and phenotype. Most investigations have employed dishes coated with purified matrix constituents or plain collagen I lattices omitting the effects of other important matrix components such as proteoglycans. In this study we analyze the effect of purified glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) on human fibroblasts...

BACKGROUND Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic inflammatory disease leading to alterations of the extracellular matrix in tendons, ligaments, and cartilage. The structural changes of the collagenous systems in rheumatoid connective tissues are largely unknown, however. METHODS Thirty four samples of menisci, 36 cruciate ligaments, and four tendons were taken during joint surgery in patients wit...

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE In the treatment of cerebral aneurysms, platinum coils often fail to elicit a fibrotic response. We tested the hypothesis that a new, collagen-based endovascular coil would improve angiographic and histologic outcomes as compared with those achieved with platinum coils in a rabbit model of saccular aneurysms. METHODS Elastase-induced aneurysms were created in 12 New Zea...

The goal of our studies was to characterize the interrelationship between extracellular matrix organization and fibroblast proliferation in response to growth factors. We compared fibroblasts in monolayer culture with cells in contracted collagen matrices that were mechanically stressed or relaxed. In response to platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF), DNA synthesis by fibroblasts in mechanicall...

This paper reports the characteristics and hemostatic ability of collagen/ginsenoside Rb1 composites with different ginsenoside content, in which, collagen was extracted from fresh water fish scales Panax notoginseng. Glucose glutaraldehyde were used as crosslinking agents for molecules. Infrared (IR) spectroscopy Field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) applied to assess functional ...

Enzymatic processing of extracellular matrix (ECM) macromolecules by matrix metalloproteases (MMPs) is crucial in mediating physiological and pathological cell processes. However, the molecular mechanisms leading to effective physiological enzyme-ECM interactions remain elusive. Only scant information is available on the mode by which matrix proteases degrade ECM substrates. An example is the e...

Chondroadherin is a cell binding, leucine-rich repeat protein found in the territorial matrix of articular cartilage. Several members of the leucine-rich repeat protein family present in the extracellular matrix of e.g. cartilage have been shown to interact with collagen and influence collagen fibrillogenesis. We show that complexes of monomeric collagen type II and chondroadherin can be releas...

Cell structure depends on both matrix strain and stiffness, but their interactive effects are poorly understood. We investigated the interactive roles of matrix properties and stretching patterns on cell structure by uniaxially stretching U2OS cells expressing GFP-actin on silicone rubber sheets supporting either a surface-adsorbed coating or thick hydrogel of type-I collagen. Cells and their a...