title: Hydrogel-encapsulated 3D microwell array for neuronal differentiation.
abstract: We developed a photo-crosslinkable hydrogel-encapsulated three-dimensional (3D) microwell array for studying embryonic stem (ES) cell-derived neuronal differentiation. ES cells were cultured for 5 d in microwells and were subsequently encapsulated by photo-crosslinkable gelatin methacrylate (GelMA) and polyethylene glycol (PEG) hydrogels for an additional 7 d. We observed that ES cells cultured in PEG microwells became uniform-sized embryoid bodies (EBs) compared to those in GelMA microwells. Although ES cells were encapsulated by photo-crosslinkable GelMA and PEG hydrogels, they were highly viable. We demonstrated that uniform-sized EBs encapsulated by GelMA hydrogels in PEG microwells are largely differentiated into neuronal cells. It was revealed that neurites at the periphery of EBs in PEG microwells largely extended into the interface between GelMA hydrogels and PEG microwells for generating neuronal networks. Therefore, this photo-crosslinkable GelMA hydrogel-encapsulated PEG microwell array could be a potentially powerful tool for neurodegenerative disease applications.
authors.affiliation: Department of Mechanical Engineering, Sogang University, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: Jun Hyuk
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Bae
authors.forename: Jong Min
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Bong Geun
authors.initials: BG
authors.lastname: Chung
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D061249:Batch Cell Culture Techniques / Q000295:instrumentation*; D002454:Cell Differentiation / Q000502:physiology; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D053595:Embryonic Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology* / Q000502:physiology; D004867:Equipment Design; D019544:Equipment Failure Analysis; D020100:Hydrogels / Q000737:chemistry*; D056656:Lab-On-A-Chip Devices; D008422:Materials Testing; D051379:Mice; D058953:Neural Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology* / Q000502:physiology; D066330:Printing, Three-Dimensional; D023822:Tissue Engineering / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods
chemical_list: D020100:Hydrogels