title: Dynamic microenvironments: the fourth dimension.
abstract: The extracellular space, or cell microenvironment, choreographs cell behavior through myriad controlled signals, and aberrant cues can result in dysfunction and disease. For functional studies of human cell biology or expansion and delivery of cells for therapeutic purposes, scientists must decipher this intricate map of microenvironment biology and develop ways to mimic these functions in vitro. In this Perspective, we describe technologies for four-dimensional (4D) biology: cell-laden matrices engineered to recapitulate tissue and organ function in 3D space and over time.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Colorado at Boulder, Boulder, CO 80309, 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; D001672:Biocompatible Materials; D018929:Cell Culture Techniques; D015509:Developmental Biology / Q000379:methods; D018450:Disease Progression; D015195:Drug Design; D005109:Extracellular Matrix / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D008422:Materials Testing; D023822:Tissue Engineering / Q000379:methods*; D014945:Wound Healing
chemical_list: D001672:Biocompatible Materials