title: Engineering Enriched Microenvironments with Gradients of Platelet Lysate in Hydrogel Fibers.
abstract: Gradients of physical and chemical cues are characteristic of specific tissue microenvironments and contribute toward morphogenesis and tissue regeneration upon injury. Recent advances on microfluidics and hydrogel manipulation raised the possibility of generating biomimetic biomaterials enriched with bioactive factors and encapsulating cells following designs specifically tailored for a target application. The novelty of this work relies on the combination of methacrylated gellan gum (MeGG) with platelet lysate (PL), aiming to generate novel advanced 3D PL-enriched photo-cross-linkable hydrogels and overcoming the lack of adhesion sites provided by the native MeGG hydrogels. This combination takes advantage of the availability, enriched growth factor composition, and potential autologous application of PL while simultaneously preserving the ability provided by MeGG to tailor mechanical properties, protein release kinetics, and shape of the construct according to the desired goal. Incorporation of PL in the hydrogels significantly improved cellular adhesion and viability in the constructs. The use of microfluidic tools allowed the design of a fiber-like hydrogel incorporating a gradient of PL along the length of the fiber. These spatial protein gradients led to the viability and cell number gradients caused by maintenance of human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) survival in the fibers toward the PL-enriched sections in comparison with the nonloaded MeGG sections of the fibers. Altogether, we propose a proof of concept strategy to design a PL gradient biomaterial with potential in tissue engineering approaches and analysis of cell-microenvironment interactions.
authors.affiliation: 3B's Research Group - Biomaterials, Biodegradables and Biomimetics, University of Minho , Headquarters of the European Institute of Excellence on Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine, AvePark, 4806-909 Taipas, Guimarães Portugal.|ICVS/3B's - PT Government Associate Laboratory , 4710-243Braga/Guimarães , Portugal.
authors.forename: Vítor E
authors.initials: VE
authors.lastname: Santo
authors.affiliation: 3B's Research Group - Biomaterials, Biodegradables and Biomimetics, University of Minho , Headquarters of the European Institute of Excellence on Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine, AvePark, 4806-909 Taipas, Guimarães Portugal.|ICVS/3B's - PT Government Associate Laboratory , 4710-243Braga/Guimarães , Portugal.
authors.forename: Pedro
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Babo
authors.affiliation: 3B's Research Group - Biomaterials, Biodegradables and Biomimetics, University of Minho , Headquarters of the European Institute of Excellence on Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine, AvePark, 4806-909 Taipas, Guimarães Portugal.|ICVS/3B's - PT Government Associate Laboratory , 4710-243Braga/Guimarães , Portugal.
authors.forename: Miguel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Amador
authors.affiliation: iBET, Instituto de Biologia Experimental e Tecnológica , Apartado 12, 2780-901 Oeiras, Portugal.
authors.forename: Cláudia
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Correia
authors.affiliation: iBET, Instituto de Biologia Experimental e Tecnológica , Apartado 12, 2780-901 Oeiras, Portugal.
authors.forename: Bárbara
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Cunha
authors.affiliation: 3B's Research Group - Biomaterials, Biodegradables and Biomimetics, University of Minho , Headquarters of the European Institute of Excellence on Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine, AvePark, 4806-909 Taipas, Guimarães Portugal.|ICVS/3B's - PT Government Associate Laboratory , 4710-243Braga/Guimarães , Portugal.
authors.forename: Daniela F
authors.initials: DF
authors.lastname: Coutinho
authors.affiliation: 3B's Research Group - Biomaterials, Biodegradables and Biomimetics, University of Minho , Headquarters of the European Institute of Excellence on Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine, AvePark, 4806-909 Taipas, Guimarães Portugal.|ICVS/3B's - PT Government Associate Laboratory , 4710-243Braga/Guimarães , Portugal.
authors.forename: Nuno M
authors.initials: NM
authors.lastname: Neves
authors.affiliation: 3B's Research Group - Biomaterials, Biodegradables and Biomimetics, University of Minho , Headquarters of the European Institute of Excellence on Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine, AvePark, 4806-909 Taipas, Guimarães Portugal.|ICVS/3B's - PT Government Associate Laboratory , 4710-243Braga/Guimarães , Portugal.
authors.forename: João F
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Mano
authors.affiliation: 3B's Research Group - Biomaterials, Biodegradables and Biomimetics, University of Minho , Headquarters of the European Institute of Excellence on Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine, AvePark, 4806-909 Taipas, Guimarães Portugal.|ICVS/3B's - PT Government Associate Laboratory , 4710-243Braga/Guimarães , Portugal.
authors.forename: Rui L
authors.initials: RL
authors.lastname: Reis
authors.affiliation: 3B's Research Group - Biomaterials, Biodegradables and Biomimetics, University of Minho , Headquarters of the European Institute of Excellence on Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine, AvePark, 4806-909 Taipas, Guimarães Portugal.|ICVS/3B's - PT Government Associate Laboratory , 4710-243Braga/Guimarães , Portugal.
authors.forename: Manuela E
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Gomes
mesh_terms: D000171:Acrolein / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000737:chemistry; D000273:Adipose Tissue / Q000166:cytology; D040761:Biomimetic Materials / Q000138:chemical synthesis / Q000737:chemistry; D001792:Blood Platelets / Q000737:chemistry*; D002448:Cell Adhesion; D002470:Cell Survival; D060833:Cellular Microenvironment; D061307:Human Umbilical Vein Endothelial Cells; D006801:Humans; D020100:Hydrogels / Q000138:chemical synthesis / Q000737:chemistry; D044085:Microfluidics; D011135:Polysaccharides, Bacterial / Q000737:chemistry; D013234:Stem Cells / Q000166:cytology*; D013499:Surface Properties; D023822:Tissue Engineering; D054457:Tissue Scaffolds / Q000737:chemistry
chemical_list: D020100:Hydrogels; D011135:Polysaccharides, Bacterial; C048288:gellan gum; D000171:Acrolein; C039175:methacrylaldehyde