Achilles tendon rupture (ATR) is a common sports injury, and complications usually occur. Promoting self-healing and suppressing the formation of scars and adhesions are priorities when treating ATR. The dual biomimetic electrospun Wharton’s Jelly (WJ)-derived extra cellular matrix (ECM)/polycaprolactone (PCL) sub-micron fibrous band-aid was developed for this purpose. Each electrospun band-aid...

The goal of this study was to establish an optimal in vitro growth assay system for human urologica! tumor expiants. Bovine corneal endotelial cell extracellular matrix (ECM) coated dishes were evaluated as a growth substrate for tumor cultures. Growth success for different urologica! carcinomas (prostatic, bladder, kidney, and testicular) was compared after seeding fresh surgical expiants onto...

The adhesion and aggregation of platelets during hemostasis and thrombosis represents one of the best-understood examples of cell-matrix adhesion. Platelets are exposed to a wide variety of extracellular matrix (ECM) proteins once blood vessels are damaged and basement membranes and interstitial ECM are exposed. Platelet adhesion to these ECM proteins involves ECM receptors familiar in other co...

PURPOSE The bone morphogenic protein (BMP) antagonist gremlin is elevated in glaucomatous trabecular meshwork (TM) cells and tissues and elevates intraocular pressure (IOP). Gremlin also blocks BMP4 inhibition of transforming growth factor (TGF)-β2 induction of TM extracellular matrix (ECM) proteins. The purpose of this study was to determine whether Gremlin regulates ECM proteins in cultured h...

The Extracellular Matrix (ECM) undergoes changes in composition and organization during tumor progression. In breast cancer, increased deposition and cross linking-induced alignment of collagen I create a stiffer microenvironment that directly contributes to cancer invasion. While ECM stiffness-induced invasion has been documented, it remains unclear if ECM density also contributes to invasion ...

Embryonic stem cells (ESCs) have emerged as potential cell sources for tissue engineering and regeneration owing to its virtually unlimited replicative capacity and the potential to differentiate into a variety of cell types. Current differentiation strategies primarily involve various growth factor/inducer/repressor concoctions with less emphasis on the substrate. Developing biomaterials to pr...

Roots of forest trees are associated with various ectomycorrhizal (ECM) fungal species that are involved in nutrient exchange between host plant and the soil compartment. The identification of ECM fungi in small environmental samples is difficult. The present study tested the feasibility of attenuated total reflection Fourier-transform infrared (ATR-FTIR) spectroscopy followed by hierarchical c...

While the cellular mechanisms of liver regeneration have been thoroughly studied, the role of extracellular matrix (ECM) in liver regeneration is still poorly understood. We utilized a proteomics-based approach to identify the shifts in ECM composition after CCl4 or DDC treatment and studied their effect on the proliferation of liver cells by combining biophysical and cell culture methods. We i...

A Th1 response is required for the development of Plasmodium berghei ANKA (PbA)-induced experimental cerebral malaria (ECM). The role of pro-Th1 IL-12 in malaria is complex and controversial. In this study, we addressed the role of IL-12Rβ2 in ECM development. C57BL/6 mice deficient for IL-12Rβ2, IL-12p40, or IL-12p35 were analyzed for ECM development after blood-stage PbA infection in terms of...

The present article focuses on the pathophysiology of myocardial extracellular matrix (ECM) remodelling in chronic heart failure (CHF). The trigger mechanisms for ECM remodelling include acute loss of contractile elements as a consequence of myocardial ischaemia, mechanical tension, oxidative stress and neurohumoral activation. The ECM phenotype changes as a result of the expression of fetal re...