TY - JOUR A1 - Angelova, Liliya A1 - Daskalova, Albena A1 - Filipov, Emil A1 - Monforte Vila, Xavier A1 - Tomasch, Janine A1 - Avdeev, Georgi A1 - Teuschl-Woller, Andreas Herbert A1 - Buchvarov, Ivan T1 - Optimizing the Surface Structural and Morphological Properties of Silk Thin Films via Ultra-Short Laser Texturing for Creation of Muscle Cell Matrix Model JF - Polymers N2 - Temporary scaffolds that mimic the extracellular matrix's structure and provide a stable substratum for the natural growth of cells are an innovative trend in the field of tissue engineering. The aim of this study is to obtain and design porous 2D fibroin-based cell matrices by femtosecond laser-induced microstructuring for future applications in muscle tissue engineering. Ultra-fast laser treatment is a non-contact method, which generates controlled porosity-the creation of micro/nanostructures on the surface of the biopolymer that can strongly affect cell behavior, while the control over its surface characteristics has the potential of directing the growth of future muscle tissue in the desired direction. The laser structured 2D thin film matrices from silk were characterized by means of SEM, EDX, AFM, FTIR, Micro-Raman, XRD, and 3D-roughness analyses. A WCA evaluation and initial experiments with murine C2C12 myoblasts cells were also performed. The results show that by varying the laser parameters, a different structuring degree can be achieved through the initial lifting and ejection of the material around the area of laser interaction to generate porous channels with varying widths and depths. The proper optimization of the applied laser parameters can significantly improve the bioactive properties of the investigated 2D model of a muscle cell matrix. Keywords: biopolymers; femtosecond laser processing; muscle cell matrix 2D model; muscle tissue engineering; silk fibroin. KW - Tissue Engineering KW - Muscle Cell matrix Model KW - Silk Scaffold KW - Surface Structure Y1 - VL - 2022 IS - 14(13), 2584 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Johannes, Hackethal A1 - Weihs, Anna A1 - Karner, Lisa A1 - Metzger, Magdalena A1 - Dungel, Peter A1 - Hennerbichler, Simone A1 - Redl, Heinz A1 - Teuschl-Woller, Andreas Herbert T1 - Novel Human Placenta-Based Extract for Vascularization Strategies in Tissue Engineering JF - Tissue Eng Part C Methods N2 - There is critical unmet need for new vascularized tissues to support or replace injured tissues and organs. Various synthetic and natural materials were already established for use of two-dimensional (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) in vitro neovascularization assays, however, they still cannot mimic the complex functions of the sum of the extracellular matrix (ECM) in native intact tissue. Currently, this issue is only addressed by artificial products such as Matrigel™, which comprises a complex mixture of ECM proteins, extracted from animal tumor tissue. Despite its outstanding bioactivity, the isolation from tumor tissue hinders its translation into clinical applications. Since nonhuman ECM proteins may cause immune reactions, as are frequently observed in clinical trials, human ECM proteins represent the best option when aiming for clinical applications. Here, we describe an effective method of isolating a human placenta substrate (hpS) that induces the spontaneous formation of an interconnected network of green fluorescence-labeled human umbilical vein endothelial cells (gfpHUVECs) in vitro. The substrate was biochemically characterized by using a combination of bicinchoninic acid (BCA) assay, DNA, and glycosaminoglycan (GAG) content assays, sodium dodecyl sulfate/polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) analysis and Western blot, angiogenesis arrays, chromatographic thrombin detection, high performance liquid chromatography (HPLC)-based amino acid quantification analysis, and assessment of antimicrobial properties. 2D in vitro cell culture experiments have been performed to determine the vasculogenic potential of hpS, which demonstrated that cell networks developed on hpS show a significantly higher degree of complexity (number of tubules/junctions; total/mean tube length) when compared with Matrigel. As 3D cell culture techniques represent a more accurate representation of the in vivo condition, the substrate was 3D solidified using various natural polymers. 3D in vitro vasculogenesis assays have been performed by seeding gfpHUVECs in an hpS-fibrinogen clot. In conclusion, hpS provides a potent human/material-based alternative to xenogenic-material-based biomaterials for vascularization strategies in tissue engineering. KW - Tissue Engineering KW - Biomaterials KW - HUVEC KW - Acellular biological matrices KW - Angiogenesis and vasculogenesis Y1 - VL - 27 IS - 11 SP - 616 EP - 632 ER -