Mechanoregulation of cardiac myofibroblast differentiation: implications for cardiac fibrosis and therapy.

Cardiac myofibroblast differentiation, as one of the most important cellular responses to heart injury, plays a critical role in cardiac remodeling and failure. While biochemical cues for this have been extensively investigated, the role of mechanical cues, e.g.

Dextran-based hydrogel formed by thiol-Michael addition reaction for 3D cell encapsulation.

Cell encapsulation in three-dimensional (3D) hydrogels can mimic native cell microenvironment and plays a major role in cell-based transplantation therapies. In this contribution, a novel in situ-forming hydrogel, Dex-l-DTT hydrogel ("l" means "linked-by"), by cross-linking glycidyl methacrylate derivatized dextran (Dex-GMA) and dithiothreitol (DTT) under physiological conditions, has been developed using thiol-Michael addition reaction. The mechanical properties, gelation process and degree of swelling of the hydrogel can be easily adjusted by changing the pH of phosphate buffer saline.

Reaction-induced swelling of ionic gels.

A chemomechanical theory is proposed to describe the dynamic behavior and response time of ionic gels. The large deformation of these gels accompanied by the migration of mobile ions is driven by a common non-equilibrium chemical reaction. The theoretical model was validated using existing experimental data.

Microfluidic hydrogels for tissue engineering.

With advanced properties similar to the native extracellular matrix, hydrogels have found widespread applications in tissue engineering. Hydrogel-based cellular constructs have been successfully developed to engineer different tissues such as skin, cartilage and bladder. Whilst significant advances have been made, it is still challenging to fabricate large and complex functional tissues due mainly to the limited diffusion capability of hydrogels.