The effect of poly (ethylene-co-vinyl alcohol) on senescence-associated alterations of human dermal fibroblasts.

It is well known that biomaterials play an important role in the regulation of adhesion and growth of a variety of cultured cell types. However, whether biomaterials are associated with the senescence of cultured cells is not known. The present work shows that the decrease of the hydrophobic property of poly (ethylene-co-vinyl alcohol) (EVAL) from 44 mole% to 27 mole% ethylene could induce characteristic senescence-associated phenotypic changes such as larger cell shape, re-organized actin cytoskeleton, lower proliferation capacity, higher levels of senescence-associated beta-galactosidase (SA beta-gal) activity, and upregulation of the cell-cycle inhibitor p53 and its transcriptional target p21 in the cultured human diploid fibroblasts (HDFs).