ArticleBiomaterials2020
Cell-mediated matrix stiffening accompanies capillary morphogenesis in ultra-soft amorphous hydrogels.
Article in Biomaterials, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 26 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
26 citing papers in PubMed, 37 citations in OpenAlex.
- Ultrasound-responsive composite hydrogels: Design rules for spatiotemporally controlled drug delivery.Journal of controlled release : official journal of the Controlled Release Society · 2026Review
- Active Microrheology Reveals Distinct ECM Mechanical Signatures Induced by Stromal Cells of Different Tissue Origins during Vascular Morphogenesis.ACS biomaterials science & engineering · 2026Article
- PEG-Collagen Interpenetrating Networks Support Enhanced Vasculogenic Self-Assembly and Impact Cell-Mediated Remodeling.ACS biomaterials science & engineering · 2025Article
- Using High-Throughput Screening to Identify Crosslinking Peptides That Control Cell-Mediated Matrix Degradation.Advanced healthcare materials · 2025Article
- Reverberant optical coherence elastography using 3D-printed randomly distributed scatterers: elasticity mapping of hydrogels in culture dishes.Journal of biomedical optics · 2025Article
- A Tissue Engineering's Guide to Biomimicry.Macromolecular bioscience · 2025Review
- Multicellularity, Culture Duration, and Hydrogel Stiffness Guide Induced Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived Endothelial Progenitor Cell Contractility.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2025Article
- Biofabrication and Characterization of Vascularizing PEG-Norbornene Microgels.Journal of biomedical materials research. Part A · 2025Article
- Label-Free Prediction of Fluorescently Labeled Fibrin Networks.Biomaterials research · 2025Article
- Nascent matrix deposition supports alveolar organoid formation from aggregates in synthetic hydrogels.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2024Article
- Engineering primitive multiscale chimeric vasculature by combining human microvessels with explanted murine vessels.Scientific reports · 2024Article
- Matrix density regulates adipocyte phenotype.Adipocyte · 2023Article
- Fibroblasts alter the physical properties of dermal ECM-derived hydrogels to create a pro-angiogenic microenvironment.Materials today. Bio · 2023Article
- Crossover of surface waves and capillary-viscous-elastic transition in soft biomaterials detected by resonant acoustic rheometry.Biomaterials · 2023Article
- Emergent mechanical control of vascular morphogenesis.Science advances · 2023Article
- The extracellular matrix mechanics in the vasculature.Nature cardiovascular research · 2023Review
- A combination of matrix stiffness and degradability dictate microvascular network assembly and remodeling in cell-laden poly(ethylene glycol) hydrogels.Biomaterials · 2023Article
- Junctional epithelium and hemidesmosomes: Tape and rivets for solving the "percutaneous device dilemma" in dental and other permanent implants.Bioactive materials · 2022Review
- Acellular Tissue-Engineered Vascular Grafts from Polymers: Methods, Achievements, Characterization, and Challenges.Polymers · 2022Review
- Stiffening Matrix Induces Age-Mediated Microvascular Phenotype Through Increased Cell Contractility and Destabilization of Adherens Junctions.Advanced science (Weinheim, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany) · 2022Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
6 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
There is a critical need for biomaterials that support robust neovascularization for a wide-range of clinical applications. Here we report how cells alter tissue-level mechanical properties during capillary morphogenesis using a model of endothelial-stromal cell co-culture within poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) based hydrogels. After a week of culture, we observed substantial stiffening in hydrogels with very soft initial properties. Endothelial cells or stromal cells alone, however, failed to induce hydrogel stiffening. This stiffening tightly correlated with degree of vessel formation but not with hydrogel compaction or cellular proliferation. Despite a lack of fibrillar architecture within the PEG hydrogels, cell-generated contractile forces were essential for hydrogel stiffening. Upregulation of alpha smooth muscle actin and collagen-1 was also correlated with enhanced vessel formation and hydrogel stiffening. Blocking cell-mediated hydrogel degradation abolished stiffening, demonstrating that matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-mediated remodeling is required for stiffening to occur. These results highlight the dynamic reciprocity between cells and their mechanical microenvironment during capillary morphogenesis and provide important insights for the rational design of materials for vasculogenic applications.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.