Review

Emerging concepts in engineering extracellular matrix variants for directing cell phenotype

The Wallace H Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology and Emory University, 313 Ferst Drive, Atlanta, GA 30332-0535, USA.

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Email the corresponding author at thomas.barker@bme.gatech.edu

Thomas H Barker

† Author for correspondence

The Wallace H Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology and Emory University, 313 Ferst Drive, Atlanta, GA 30332-0535, USA.

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Email the corresponding author at thomas.barker@bme.gatech.edu

Published Online:6 Jul 2009https://doi.org/10.2217/rme.09.30

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Abstract

Directing specific, complex cell behaviors, such as differentiation, in response to biomaterials for regenerative medicine applications is, at present, a mostly unrealized goal. To date, current technological advances have been inspired by the reductionist point of view, focused on developing simple and merely adequate environments that facilitate simple cellular adhesion. However, even if extracellular matrix (ECM)-derived peptides, such as Arg–Gly–Asp (RGD), have largely demonstrated their utility in supporting cell adhesion, their lack of biological specificity is simply not optimal for controlling more integrated processes, such as cell differentiation. These more complex cellular processes require specific integrin-signaling scaffolds and presumably synergistic integrin and growth factor-receptor signaling. This article will introduce some current efforts to engineer ECM variants that incorporate additional levels of complexity for directing greater integrin specificity and synergistic ECM growth factor signaling toward directing cell phenotype.

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Papers of special note have been highlighted as: ▪ of interest ▪▪ of considerable interest

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Vol. 4, No. 4

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History

Published online 6 July 2009

Published in print July 2009

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Acknowledgement

The authors would like to acknowledge M Martino for his helpful insights with the concepts regarding proteolytic processing of the extracellular matrix.

Financial & competing interests disclosure

Funding was provided by NIH T32-GM008433 (AE Carson) and NSF ERC EEC-9731643 (TH Barker). The authors have no other relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript apart from those disclosed.

No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.

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