title: Hydrogels as extracellular matrix mimics for 3D cell culture.
abstract: Methods for culturing mammalian cells ex vivo are increasingly needed to study cell and tissue physiology and to grow replacement tissue for regenerative medicine. Two-dimensional culture has been the paradigm for typical in vitro cell culture; however, it has been demonstrated that cells behave more natively when cultured in three-dimensional environments. Permissive, synthetic hydrogels and promoting, natural hydrogels have become popular as three-dimensional cell culture platforms; yet, both of these systems possess limitations. In this perspective, we discuss the use of both synthetic and natural hydrogels as scaffolds for three-dimensional cell culture as well as synthetic hydrogels that incorporate sophisticated biochemical and mechanical cues as mimics of the native extracellular matrix. Ultimately, advances in synthetic-biologic hydrogel hybrids are needed to provide robust platforms for investigating cell physiology and fabricating tissue outside of the organism.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO, USA.
authors.forename: Mark W
authors.initials: MW
authors.lastname: Tibbitt
authors.forename: Kristi S
authors.initials: KS
authors.lastname: Anseth
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D005109:Extracellular Matrix; D006801:Humans; D020136:Hydrogel, Polyethylene Glycol Dimethacrylate; D008322:Mammals; D023822:Tissue Engineering / Q000379:methods*
chemical_list: D020136:Hydrogel, Polyethylene Glycol Dimethacrylate