Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40931465›Full record

ArticleACS biomaterials science & engineering2025

Modeling Uterine Fibroids Using Bioengineered Hydrogels.

Allison K Moses, Miriam Tamaño-Blanco, Erika Moore

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in ACS biomaterials science & engineering, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

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.

2 · The registry

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.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors.

Allison K MosesFischell Department of Bioengineering, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland 20742, United States.ORCID 0009-0008-9847-1156
Miriam Tamaño-BlancoFischell Department of Bioengineering, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland 20742, United States.
Erika MooreFischell Department of Bioengineering, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland 20742, United States.ORCID 0000-0003-2192-6147

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Uterine fibroids are the most common gynecological tumors, characterized by excessive production of extracellular matrix. Despite their prevalence, the cellular mechanisms governing fibroid growth remain poorly understood. Current in vitro models for fibroids do not replicate the complex 3D tissue mechanics, structure, and extracellular matrix components of fibroids, which may limit our understanding of fibroid pathogenesis. To address this gap, we aimed to develop a 3D in vitro model to mimic aspects of the fibroid microenvironment. By encapsulating human uterine fibroblasts in poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG)-based hydrogels comprising collagen- and fibronectin-derived peptides, this model allows for incorporation of fibroid cellular components, extracellular matrix components, and fibroid or myometrial tissue stiffness. Due to its mechanistic role in fibroblast activation and subsequent extracellular matrix production seen in fibroids, we treated uterine fibroblasts with transforming growth factor beta 3 (TGF-β3) to demonstrate quantification of fibrotic markers observed in fibroids. Here, we establish that human uterine fibroblasts increase α smooth muscle actin, extracellular matrix proteins, and cell elongation, as well as high metabolic activity and matrix remodeling in PEG-based hydrogels in response to TGF-β3. This research represents a physiologically relevant in vitro platform to investigate uterine fibroblast function within a 3D environment that mimics uterine fibroids, with the potential to advance our understanding of the cellular and molecular mechanisms driving fibroid growth and development.

Indexed as

HydrogelsLeiomyomaUterine NeoplasmsCells, CulturedExtracellular MatrixFemaleFibroblastsHumansPolyethylene GlycolsTransforming Growth Factor beta3UterusHydrogelsPolyethylene GlycolsTransforming Growth Factor beta33D in vitro modelextracellular matrixfibroblast activationhydrogeltransforming growth factor betauterine fibroids

Identifiers

PMID40931465
PMCPMC12525010

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

None linked

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.