title: Micropatterning contractile C2C12 myotubes embedded in a fibrin gel.
abstract: Contractile C(2)C(12) myotube line patterns embedded in a fibrin gel have been developed to afford a physiologically relevant and stable bioassay system. The C(2)C(12) myotube/fibrin gel system was prepared by transferring a myotube monolayer from a glass substrate to a fibrin gel while retaining the original line patterns of myotubes. To endow the myotubes with contractile activity, a series of electrical pulses was applied through a pair of carbon electrodes placed at either side of a fibrin gel separately. The frequency and magnitude of myotube contraction were functions of the pulse frequency and duration, respectively. We found that the myotubes supported by an elastic fibrin gel maintained their line patterns and contractile activities for a longer period of time (1 week) than myotubes adhered on a conventional culture dish.
authors.affiliation: Department of Bioengineering and Robotics, Graduate School of Engineering, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan.
authors.forename: Kuniaki
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Nagamine
authors.forename: Takeaki
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kawashima
authors.forename: Takeshi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Ishibashi
authors.forename: Hirokazu
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kaji
authors.forename: Makoto
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kanzaki
authors.forename: Matsuhiko
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Nishizawa
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D004558:Electric Stimulation; D005337:Fibrin / Q000737:chemistry*; D051379:Mice; D055616:Microtechnology; D009119:Muscle Contraction / Q000502:physiology*; D018485:Muscle Fibers, Skeletal / Q000166:cytology / Q000502:physiology* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D046509:Tissue Culture Techniques / Q000379:methods*; D054457:Tissue Scaffolds / Q000737:chemistry*
chemical_list: D005337:Fibrin