title: A Self-Assembling Injectable Biomimetic Microenvironment Encourages Retinal Ganglion Cell Axon Extension in Vitro.
abstract: Sensory-somatic nervous system neurons, such as retinal ganglion cells (RGCs), are typically thought to be incapable of regenerating. However, it is now known that these cells may be stimulated to regenerate by providing them with a growth permissive environment. We have engineered an injectable microenvironment designed to provide growth-stimulating cues for RGC culture. Upon gelation, this injectable material not only self-assembles into laminar sheets, similar to retinal organization, but also possesses a storage modulus comparable to that of retinal tissue. Primary rat RGCs were grown, stained, and imaged in this three-dimensional scaffold. We were able to show that RGCs grown in this retina-like structure exhibited characteristic long, prominent axons. In addition, RGCs showed a consistent increase in average axon length and neurite-bearing ratio over the 7 day culture period, indicating this scaffold is capable of supporting substantial RGC axon extension.
authors.affiliation: Department of Bioengineering, University of Colorado Denver Anschutz Medical Campus , Aurora, Colorado 80045, United States.
authors.forename: Melissa R
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Laughter
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, University of Colorado Denver Anschutz Medical Campus , Aurora, Colorado 80045, United States.
authors.forename: David A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Ammar
authors.affiliation: Department of Bioengineering, University of Colorado Denver Anschutz Medical Campus , Aurora, Colorado 80045, United States.
authors.forename: James R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Bardill
authors.affiliation: Department of Bioengineering, University of Colorado Denver Anschutz Medical Campus , Aurora, Colorado 80045, United States.
authors.forename: Brisa
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Pena
authors.affiliation: Department of Ophthalmology, University of Colorado Denver Anschutz Medical Campus , Aurora, Colorado 80045, United States.
authors.forename: Malik Y
authors.initials: MY
authors.lastname: Kahook
authors.affiliation: Department of Bioengineering, University of Colorado Denver Anschutz Medical Campus , Aurora, Colorado 80045, United States.
authors.forename: David J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Department of Bioengineering, University of Colorado Denver Anschutz Medical Campus , Aurora, Colorado 80045, United States.
authors.forename: Daewon
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Park
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001369:Axons; D032701:Biomimetics; D009416:Nerve Regeneration; D016501:Neurites; D051381:Rats; D012160:Retina; D012165:Retinal Ganglion Cells
keywords: 3D scaffold; biomimetic; retinal ganglion cells; reverse thermal gel; self-assembling