Projects per year
Abstract
Trauma to the central and peripheral nervous systems often lead to serious morbidity. Current surgical methods for repairing or replacing such damage have limitations. Tissue engineering offers a potential alternative. Here we show that functionalized α-helical-peptide hydrogels can be used to induce attachment, migration, proliferation and differentiation of murine embryonic neural stem cells (NSCs). Specifically, compared with undecorated gels, those functionalized with Arg-Gly-Asp-Ser (RGDS) peptides increase the proliferative activity of NSCs; promote their directional migration; induce differentiation, with increased expression of microtubule-associated protein-2, and a low expression of glial fibrillary acidic protein; and lead to the formation of larger neurospheres. Electrophysiological measurements from NSCs grown in RGDS-decorated gels indicate developmental progress toward mature neuron-like behavior. Our data indicate that these functional peptide hydrogels may go some way toward overcoming the limitations of current approaches to nerve-tissue repair.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 431-439 |
Number of pages | 9 |
Journal | ACS Biomaterials Science and Engineering |
Volume | 1 |
Issue number | 6 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 8 Jun 2015 |
Research Groups and Themes
- Bristol BioDesign Institute
- BrisSynBio
- BCS and TECS CDTs
Keywords
- peptide
- synthetic biology
- self-assembly
- hydrogel
- RGD peptide
- Synthetic biology
- stem cell
- nerve tissue engineering
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Dive into the research topics of 'Functionalized α-Helical Peptide Hydrogels for Neural Tissue Engineering'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.Projects
- 2 Finished
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3-month Core Capability for Chemistry Research
Crosby, J. (Principal Investigator)
1/01/13 → 1/04/13
Project: Research
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alpha-Helical peptide hydrogels as instructive scaffolds for 3D cell culture and tissue engineering
Woolfson, D. N. (Principal Investigator)
1/11/10 → 1/05/14
Project: Research