Tunable and Reversible Substrate Stiffness Reveals a Dynamic Mechanosensitivity of Cardiomyocytes

• DOI: 10.1021/acsami.9b02446
• Publication Date: 2019-05-10T19:08:51Z
• Authors: Elise A. Corbin; Alexia Vite; Eliot G. Peyster; Myan Bhoopalam; Jeffrey Brandimarto; Xiao Wang; Alexander I. Bennett; Andy T. Clark; Xuemei Cheng; Kevin T. Turner; Kiran Musunuru; Kenneth B. Margulies
• Keywords: Sarcomeres; 0303 health sciences; Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells; Cell Differentiation; Models, Theoretical; Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction; Actins; Extracellular Matrix; 03 medical and health sciences; Elastomers; Humans; Myocytes, Cardiac; Dimethylpolysiloxanes; Cell Division

New directions in material applications have allowed for the fresh insight into coordination of biophysical cues and regulators. Although role mechanical microenvironment on cell responses mechanics is often studied, most analyses only consider static environments behavior, however, cells tissues are themselves dynamic materials that adapt myriad ways to alterations their environment. Here, we introduce an approach, through addition magnetic inclusions a soft poly(dimethylsiloxane) elastomer, fabricate substrate can be stiffened nearly instantaneously presence use gradient investigate short-term cellular stiffening or softening. This allows us observe time-dependent changes, such as spreading, stress fiber formation, Yes-associated protein translocation, sarcomere organization. The identification temporal changes short time scale suggests this technology more broadly applied study targeted mechanisms diverse biologic processes, including division, differentiation, tissue repair, pathological adaptations, cell-death pathways. Our method provides unique vitro platform studying behavior by better mimicking complex realistic microenvironments. will amenable future studies aimed at elucidating underlying sensing signaling influence behaviors interactions.