Biomedical Engineering and Bioengineering Commons^™

Surface Antibody Changes Protein Corona Both In Human And Mouse Serum But Not Final Opsonization And Elimination Of Targeted Polymeric Nanoparticles, Sara Capolla, Federico Colombo, Luca De Maso, Prisca Mauro, Paolo Bertoncin, Thilo Kähne, Alexander Engler, Luis Núñez, Gustavo Larsen, Et Al.

Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering: Faculty Publications

Background: Nanoparticles represent one of the most important innovations in the medical field. Among nanocarriers, polymeric nanoparticles (PNPs) attracted much attention due to their biodegradability, biocompatibility, and capacity to increase efficacy and safety of encapsulated drugs. Another important improvement in the use of nanoparticles as delivery systems is the conjugation of a targeting agent that enables the nanoparticles to accumulate in a specific tissue. Despite these advantages, the clinical translation of therapeutic approaches based on nanoparticles is prevented by their interactions with blood proteins. In fact, the so-formed protein corona (PC) drastically alters the biological identity of the particles. Adsorbed …

Protocol To Develop A Synthetic Biology Toolkit For The Non-Model Bacterium R. Palustris, Mark Kathol, Cheryl Immethun, Rajib Saha

Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering: Faculty Publications

Numerous biology tools are developed to work for model organisms, which, however, do not work effectively in non-model organisms. Here, we present a protocol for developing a synthetic biology toolkit for Rhodopseudomonas palustris CGA009, a non-model bacterium with unique metabolic properties. We describe steps for introducing and characterizing biological devices in nonmodel bacteria, such as the utilization of fluorescence markers and RT-qPCR. This protocol may also be applicable for other non-model organisms. For complete details on the use and execution of this protocol, please refer to Immethun et al..¹

Mitochondrial Complex Iii Bypass Complex I To Induce Ros In Gpr17 Signaling Activation In Gbm, Sana Kari, Jeyalakshmi Kandhavelu, Akshaya Murugesan, Ramesh Thiyagarajan, Srivatsan Kidambi, Meenakshisundaram Kandhavelu

Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering: Faculty Publications

Guanine nucleotide binding protein (G protein) coupled receptor 17 (GPR17) plays crucial role in Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) cell signaling and is primarily associated with reactive oxidative species (ROS) production and cell death. However, the underlying mechanisms by which GPR17 regulates ROS level and mitochondrial electron transport chain (ETC) complexes are still unknown. Here, we investigate the novel link between the GPR17 receptor and ETC complex I and III in regulating level of intracellular ROS (ROSi) in GBM using pharmacological inhibitors and gene expression profiling. Incubation of 1321N1 GBM cells with ETC I inhibitor and GPR17 agonist decreased the ROS level, …

Protocol To Engineer Nanofilms Embedded Lipid Nanoparticles For Controlled And Targeted Drug Delivery (Nectar), Rashi Porwal, Stephen L. Hayward, Srivatsan Kidambi

Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering: Faculty Publications

We present a protocol to engineer a substrate-mediated delivery platform comprising hyaluronic acid-coated lipid nanoparticles (HALNPs) embedded into polyelectrolyte multilayer (PEM) films. This platform allows controlled spatiotemporal release of lipid nanoparticles (LNP) by embedding them within the polyelectrolyte multilayer films matrix. HALNP conjugate with antibodies also adds the ability for targeted delivery. The use of LNP enables this platform to encapsulate both hydrophobic and hydrophilic drugs. This platform can easily be reproduced and utilized for various biomedical drug delivery applications. For complete details on the use and execution of this protocol, please refer to Hayward et al. (2015, 2016a, 2016b), …

Computational Discovery Of Active And Selective Metal- Nitrogen-Graphene Catalysts For Electrooxidation Of Water To H2O2, Payal Chaudhary, Iman Evazzade, Rodion Belosludov,, Vitaly Alexandrov

Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering: Faculty Publications

A direct electrosynthesis of H₂O₂ from either O₂ or H₂O is an attractive strategy to replace the energy-intensive industrial anthraquinone process. Two-electron water oxidation reaction (2e-WOR) offers several advantages over the oxygen reduction reaction such as better mass transfer due to the absence of gasphase reactants. However, 2e-WOR is a more challenging and less studied process with only a handful of metal oxides exhibiting reasonable activity/selectivity properties. Herein, we employ density-functional-theory calculations to screen a variety of metal-nitrogen-graphene structures for 2e-WOR. As a consequence of scaling between the adsorption energies of reaction intermediates, we …

An Older Diabetes-Induced Mice Model For Studying Skin Wound Healing, Carlos Poblete Jara, Guilherme Nogueira, Joseane Morari, Thaís Paulino Do Prado, Renan De Medeiros Bezerra, Lício A. Velloso, William Velander, Eliana Pereira De Araújo

Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering: Faculty Publications

Advances in wound treatment depend on the availability of animal models that reflect key aspects of human wound healing physiology. To this date, the accepted mouse models do not reflect defects in the healing process for chronic wounds that are associated with type two diabetic skin ulcers. The long term, systemic physiologic stress that occurs in middle aged or older Type 2 diabetes patients is difficult to simulate in preclinical animal model. We have strived to incorporate the essential elements of this stress in a manageable mouse model: long term metabolic stress from obesity to include the effects of middle …

Advancing Ionomer Design To Boost Interfacial And Thin-Film Proton Conductivity Via Styrene-Calix[4]Arene-Based Ionomers, Shyambo Chatterjee, Oghenetega Allen Obewhere, Ehsan Zamani, Rajesh Keloth, Seefat Farzin, Martha D. Morton, Anandakumar Sarella, Shudipto Konika Dishari

Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering: Faculty Publications

Sub-micrometer-thick ion-conducting polymer (ionomer) layers often suffer from poor ionic conductivity at the substrate/catalyst interface. The weak proton conductivity makes the electrochemical reaction at the cathode of proton-exchange-membrane fuel cells sluggish. To address this, here we report on a class of polystyrene-based ionomers having sub-nanometer-sized, sulfonated macrocyclic calix[4]arene-based pendants (PS-calix). In films with thickness comparable to that of ionomer-based binder layers, the conductivity of PS-calix film (∼41 mS/cm) is ∼13 times higher than that of the current state-of-the-art ionomer, Nafion. We observe a similar improvement in proton conductivity when PS-calix interfaces with Pt nanoparticles, demonstrating the potential of PS-calix in …

Coupling Atr-Ftir Spectroscopy With Multivariate Analysis For Polymers Manufacturing And Control Of Polymers’ Molecular Weight, Tung Nguyen, Ahmad Arabi Shamsabadi, Mona Bavarian

Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering: Faculty Publications

Acrylate-based polymers are commonly used in the chemical industry. Consistent manufacturing of these polymers with the help of Process Analytical Technology (PAT) is very desirable. The capability of monitoring polymers’ molecular weight in real-time reduces operation time and eliminates the frequent samplings needed for quality control. Herein, molecular weight (M_w) of glycidyl methacrylate-co-methyl methacrylate (GMA-co- MMA) copolymer was monitored in real-time using mid-infrared ATR-FTIR spectroscopy. The Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and Partial Least Square (PLS) models were then utilized to examine, improve the latent space, and select high-quality spectra. We show that acquiring highly correlated spectra enhances the …

Coupling Nitrate Capture With Ammonia Production Through Bifunctional Redox-Electrodes, Kwiyong Kim, Alexandra Zagalskaya, Jing Lian Ng, Jaeyoung Hong, Vitaly Alexandrov, Tuan Anh Pham, Xiao Su

Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering: Faculty Publications

Nitrate is a ubiquitous aqueous pollutant from agricultural and industrial activities. At the same time, conversion of nitrate to ammonia provides an attractive solution for the coupled environmental and energy challenge underlying the nitrogen cycle, by valorizing a pollutant to a carbon-free energy carrier and essential chemical feedstock. Mass transport limitations are a key obstacle to the efficient conversion of nitrate to ammonia from water streams, due to the dilute concentration of nitrate. Here, we develop bifunctional electrodes that couple a nitrate-selective redox-electrosorbent (polyaniline) with an electrocatalyst (cobalt oxide) for nitrate to ammonium conversion. We demonstrate the synergistic reactive separation …

Increased Liver Stiffness Promotes Hepatitis B Progression By Impairing Innate Immunity In Ccl4-Induced Fibrotic Hbv+ Transgenic Mice, Grace Bybee, Youra Moeun, Weimin Wang, Kusum K. Kharbanda, Larisa Y. Poluektova, Srivatsan Kidambi, Natalia A. Osna, Murali Ganesan

Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering: Faculty Publications

Background: Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection develops as an acute or chronic liver disease, which progresses from steatosis, hepatitis, and fibrosis to end-stage liver diseases such as cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). An increased stromal stiffness accompanies fibrosis in chronic liver diseases and is considered a strong predictor for disease progression. The goal of this study was to establish the mechanisms by which enhanced liver stiffness regulates HBV infectivity in the fibrotic liver tissue. Methods: For in vitro studies, HBV-transfected HepG2.2.15 cells were cultured on polydimethylsiloxane gels coated by polyelectrolyte multilayer films of 2 kPa (soft) or 24 kPa (stiff) …

Mesenchymal Stromal Cells And Alpha-1 Antitrypsin Have A Strong Synergy In Modulating Inflammation And Its Resolution, Li Han, Xinran Wu, Ou Wang, Xiao Luan, William Velander, Michael Aynardi, E. Scott Halstead, Anthony S. Bonavia, Rong Jin, Guohong Li, Yulong Li, Yong Wang, Cheng Dong, Yuguo Lei

Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering: Faculty Publications

Rationale: Trauma, surgery, and infection can cause severe inflammation. Both dysregulated inflammation intensity and duration can lead to significant tissue injuries, organ dysfunction, mortality, and morbidity. Anti-inflammatory drugs such as steroids and immunosuppressants can dampen inflammation intensity, but they derail inflammation resolution, compromise normal immunity, and have significant adverse effects. The natural inflammation regulator mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) have high therapeutic potential because of their unique capabilities to mitigate inflammation intensity, enhance normal immunity, and accelerate inflammation resolution and tissue healing. Furthermore, clinical studies have shown that MSCs are safe and effective. However, they are not potent enough, alone, to …

In Vitro Models For The Study Of Liver Biology And Diseases: Advances And Limitations, Savneet Kaur, Srivatsan Kidambi, Martí Ortega-Ribera, Le Thi Thanh Thuy, Natalia Nieto, Victoria C. Cogger, Wei-Fen Xie, Frank Tacke, Jordi Gracia-Sancho

Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering: Faculty Publications

In vitro models of liver (patho)physiology, new technologies, and experimental approaches are progressing rapidly. Based on cell lines, induced pluripotent stem cells or primary cells derived from mouse or human liver as well as whole tissue (slices), such in vitro single- and multicellular models, including complex microfluidic organ-on-a-chip systems, provide tools to functionally understand mechanisms of liver health and disease. The International Society of Hepatic Sinusoidal Research (ISHSR) commissioned this working group to review the currently available in vitro liver models and describe the advantages and disadvantages of each in the context of evaluating their use for the study of …

Ab Initio Insight Into The Electrolysis Of Water On Basal And Edge (Fullerene C20) Surfaces Of 4 Å Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes, Zhen Jiang, Nadia N. Intan, Qiong Yang

Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering: Faculty Publications

The extreme surface reactivity of 4 Å single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) makes for a very promising catalytic material, however, controlling it experimentally has been found to be challenging. Here, we employ ab initio calculations to investigate the extent of surface reactivity and functionalization of 4 Å SWCNTs. We study the kinetics of water dissociation and adsorption on the surface of 4 Å SWCNTs with three different configurations: armchair (3,3), chiral (4,2) and zigzag (5,0). We reveal that out of three different configurations of 4 Å SWCNTs, the surface of tube (5,0) is the most reactive due to its small HOMO–LUMO …

Correlating The Macrostructural Variations Of An Ion Gel With Its Carbon Dioxide Sorption Capacity, Tung Nguyen,, Mona Bavarian, Siamak Nejati

Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering: Faculty Publications

We report on a direct correlation between the macroscale structural variations and the gas sorption capacities of an ion gel. Here, we chose 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium bis(trifluoromethyl sulfonyl)imide ([Emim][TF₂N]) and poly(vinylidene fluoride)-co-hexafluoropropylene (PVDF-HFP) as the ionic liquid and host polymer, respectively. The CO₂ sorption in the thin films of the IL-polymer was measured using the gravimetric method. The results of our experiment showed that the trend in CO₂ uptake of these mixtures was nonlinearly correlated with the content of IL. Here, we highlight that the variations in the molecular structure of the polymers were the main reason behind …

Electrophilic Aldehyde 4-Hydroxy-2-Nonenal Mediated Signaling And Mitochondrial Dysfunction, Sudha Sharma, Papori Sharma, Tara Bailey, Susmita Bhattarai, Utsab Subedi, Chloe Miller, Hosne Ara, Srivatsan Kidambi, Hong Sun, Manikandan Panchatcharam, Sumitra Miriyala

Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering: Faculty Publications

Reactive oxygen species (ROS), a by-product of aerobic life, are highly reactive molecules with unpaired electrons. The excess of ROS leads to oxidative stress, instigating the peroxidation of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) in the lipid membrane through a free radical chain reaction and the formation of the most bioactive aldehyde, known as 4-hydroxynonenal (4-HNE). 4-HNE functions as a signaling molecule and toxic product and acts mainly by forming covalent adducts with nucleophilic functional groups in proteins, nucleic acids, and lipids. The mitochondria have been implicated as a site for 4-HNE generation and adduction. Several studies clarified how 4-HNE affects the …

Fabricating 3-Dimensional Human Brown Adipose Microtissues For Transplantation Studies, Ou Wang, Li Han, Haishuang Lin, Mingmei Tian, Shuyang Zhang, Bin Duan, Soonkyu Chung, Chi Zhang, Xiaojun Lian, Yong Wang, Yuguo Lei

Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering: Faculty Publications

Transplanting cell cultured brown adipocytes (BAs) represents a promising approach to prevent and treat obesity (OB) and its associated metabolic disorders, including type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). However, transplanted BAs have a very low survival rate in vivo. The enzymatic dissociation during the harvest of fully differentiated BAs also loses significant cells. There is a critical need for novel methods that can avoid cell death during cell preparation, transplantation, and in vivo. Here, we reported that preparing BAs as injectable microtissues could overcome the problem. We found that 3D culture promoted BA differentiation and UCP-1 expression, and the optimal initial …

Nonordered Dendritic Mesoporous Silica Nanoparticles As Promising Platforms For Advanced Methods Of Diagnosis And Therapies, S. Malekmohammadi, Riaz Ur Rehman Mohammed, H. Samadian, A. Zarebkohan, A. García-Fernández, G.R. Kokil, F. Sharifi, J. Esmaeili, M. Bhia, M. Razavi, M. Bodaghi, T. Kumeria, R. Martínez-Máñez

Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering: Faculty Publications

Dendritic mesoporous silica nanoparticles (DMSNs) are a new generation of porous materials that have gained great attention compared to other mesoporous silicas due to attractive properties, including straightforward synthesis methods, modular surface chemistry, high surface area, tunable pore size, chemical inertness, particle size distribution, excellent biocompatibility, biodegradability, and high pore volume compared with conventional mesoporous materials. The last years have witnessed a blooming growth of the extensive utilization of DMSNs as an efficient platform in a broad spectrum of biomedical and industrial applications, such as catalysis, energy harvesting, biosensing, drug/gene delivery, imaging, theranostics, and tissue engineering. DMSNs are considered great …

Protocol To Engineer Nanofilms Embedded Lipid Nanoparticles For Controlled And Targeted Drug Delivery (Nectar), Rashi Porwal, Stephen L. Hayward, Srivatsan Kidambi

Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering: Faculty Publications

We present a protocol to engineer a substrate-mediated delivery platform comprising hyaluronic acid-coated lipid nanoparticles (HALNPs) embedded into polyelectrolyte multilayer (PEM) films. This platform allows controlled spatiotemporal release of lipid nanoparticles (LNP) by embedding them within the polyelectrolyte multilayer films matrix. HALNP conjugate with antibodies also adds the ability for targeted delivery. The use of LNP enables this platform to encapsulate both hydrophobic and hydrophilic drugs. This platform can easily be reproduced and utilized for various biomedical drug delivery applications. For complete details on the use and execution of this protocol, please refer to Hayward et al. (2015, 2016a, 2016b), …

Substrate Delivery Of Embedded Liposomes, Srivatsan Kidambi, Stephen L. Hayward

Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering: Faculty Publications

This invention relates to compositions useful for localized and sustained release of therapeutic agents, and more particularly to functionalized liposomes embedded in a poly electrolyte multilayer. Methods of preparing the compositions, methods of treating diseases, devices, and pharmaceutical compositions comprising the compositions are also provided.

Expedited Pcr With Stirring, Hendrik Viljoen

Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering: Faculty Publications

Disclosed are an apparatus and methods for rapid amplification of nucleic acids. More particularly, the present dis closure relates to an apparatus for mixing a reaction solution during amplification of nucleic acids and to methods for amplifying nucleic acids. Also disclosed are methods for lysing cells in a sample and amplifying nucleic acids.

Quantitative Pcr Of Small Nucleic Acids: Size Matters, Jay Min Lim, Rahul Tevatia, Ravi Saraf

Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering: Faculty Publications

Quantitative dysregulation in small nucleic acids (NA), such as microRNA (miRNA), extracted from minimally invasive biopsies, such as, blood, stool, urine, nose, throat, are promising biomarker for diseases diagnosis and management. We quantify the effect of the extra step of poly(A) ligation for cDNA synthesis and small size of the NA on the limit of quantification (LOQ) of quantitative PCR (qPCR), the gold standard to measure copy number. It was discovered that for small NA, the cycle threshold, Ct that is proportional to −log[c], where [c] is the concentration of the target NA exhibits a sharp transition. The results indicate …

Bioproduction Of Adipic Acid Using Engineered Pseudomonas Putida Kt2440 From Lignin-Derived Aromatics, Howard Willett

Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering: Theses and Student Research

Current industrial synthesis of adipic acid is nonrenewable and depends on a carcinogenic starting material, benzene. Biocatalysis with an engineered microorganism could turn a renewable feedstock into a value-added chemical such as adipic acid. Here we engineered P. putida KT2440 to transform lignin-derived aromatics, coumarate and ferulate, into adipic acid. Lignin is a recalcitrant plant biopolymer burned for thermal energy. Conversion of lignin into a value-added chemical will improve the efficiency of lignocellulose processing plants. The best performing engineered KT2440 strain produces 2.52 mM adipate at a 9.5% (mole/mole) yield. This was achieved by the genetic insertion of non-natural biosynthetic …

Fibrinogen, Factor Xiii And Fibronectin: A Biophysical And Kinetic Characterization Of Their Interactions, Frank Fabian

Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering: Theses and Student Research

The development of recombinant-based liquid fibrin tissue sealants having enhanced hemostatic and wound healing properties will involve understanding as yet not well characterized interactions between fibrinogen, fibrin (Fbn) factor XIII, thrombin and fibronectin. We study these phenomena in the context of comparing plasma derived fibrinogen to recombinant fibrinogen (rFI) produced in the milk of transgenic cows. An abundance of purified γγ and γγ’ FI subspecies enables detailed study of γγ or γγ’ biomonomer and their respective Fbn biopolymer formation as having different substrate behaviors of activated plasma derived factor XIII (pFXIIIa₂b₂). High pressure size exclusion (HPSEC) …

Uncoupling Fermentative Synthesis Of Molecular Hydrogen From Biomass Formation In Thermotoga Maritima, Raghuveer Singh, Derrick White, Yaşar Demirel, Robert Kelley, Kenneth Noll, Paul H. Blum

Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering: Faculty Publications

When carbohydrates are fermented by the hyperthermophilic anaerobe Thermotoga maritima, molecular hydrogen (H₂) is formed in strict proportion to substrate availability. Excretion of the organic acids acetate and lactate provide an additional sink for removal of excess reductant. However, mechanisms controlling energy management of these metabolic pathways are largely unexplored. To investigate this topic, transient gene inactivation was used to block lactate production as a strategy to produce spontaneous mutant cell lines that overproduced H₂ through mutation of unpredicted genetic targets. Single-crossover homologous chromosomal recombination was used to disrupt lactate dehydrogenase (encoded by ldh) with …

Genetic Code Expansion In Biochemical Investigations And Biomedical Applications, Nanxi Wang

Department of Chemistry: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Genetic code expansion provides a powerful tool for site-specific incorporation of unnatural amino acids (unAAs) with novel biochemical and physiological properties into proteins in live cells and organisms. To achieve this, a nonsense codon suppression system, which consists of an orthogonal aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase (aaRS) and tRNA pair that specifically decodes a nonsense codon (e.g., amber codon and quadruplet codon) with an unAA but do not “cross talk” with their endogenous counterparts, was established. This Ph.D. thesis presents our efforts on evolution and application of nonsense codon suppression systems for biochemical and biomedical investigations.

In Chapter 1, a brief overview of …

Sugar Versus Lipid For Sustainable Biofuels, Yaşar Demirel

Yaşar Demirel Publications

Introduction

First‐generation biofuels, namely, ethanol and biodiesel, have led to far reaching impact on the peoples’ life world‐wide.[1] However, they inter-fere with the food supply chain and may not be sustainable although some of the biomass are converted to biofuels after those biomasses have met the human needs. Still, the first‐generation–based biofuels have proved that sugar and lipid platforms can be an answer to energy security and global warming concerns without the need for new infrastructure for feedstock delivery as well as for biomass‐to‐biofuel conversion tech-nologies. At the same time, we are discovering and assessing the long‐term environmental im-plications on …

Characterization Of Molecular Communication Based On Cell Metabolism Through Mutual Information And Flux Balance Analysis, Zahmeeth Sayed Sakkaff

Department of Computer Science and Engineering: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Synthetic biology is providing novel tools to engineer cells and access the basis of their molecular information processing, including their communication channels based on chemical reactions and molecule exchange. Molecular communication is a discipline in communication engineering that studies these types of communications and ways to exploit them for novel purposes, such as the development of ubiquitous and heterogeneous communication networks to interconnect biological cells with nano and biotechnology-enabled devices, i.e., the Internet of Bio-Nano Things. One major problem in realizing these goals stands in the development of reliable techniques to control the engineered cells and their behavior from the …

Methanol And Dimethyl Ether From Renewable Hydrogen And Carbon Dioxide: Alternative Fuels Production And Life-Cycle Assessment, Michael J. Matzen, Yaşar Demirel

Yaşar Demirel Publications

In this work we investigate two renewably based alternative fuels; methanol and dimethyl ether. The ultimate feedstocks for production are wind-based electrolytic hydrogen and carbon dioxide captured from an ethanol fermentation process. Dimethyl ether production was modeled in ASPEN Plus using a previously simulated methanol production facility. The facilities use 18.6 metric tons (mt) of H₂ and 138.4 mt CO₂ per day. Methanol is produced at a rate 96.7 mt/day (99.5 wt%) and dimethyl ether is produced at a rate of 68.5 mt/day (99.6 wt%). A full comparative life-cycle assessment (cradle-to-grave) of both fuels was conducted to investigate …

Alginate Hydrogels As Three-Dimensional Scaffolds For In Vitro Culture Models Of Growth Plate Cartilage Development And Porcine Embryo Elongation, Taylor D. Laughlin

Department of Agricultural and Biological Systems Engineering: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The establishment of in vitro culture models utilizes tissue engineering principles to design functional mimics of in vivo environments in vitro. Advantages for the use of in vitro culture models include ethical alleviation of animal models for therapeutic testing, cost efficiency, and a greater ability to study specific mechanisms via a systematic, ground-up approach to development. In this thesis, alginate hydrogels are utilized in the development of in vitro culture models of porcine embryo elongation and growth plate cartilage development. First, the effect of scaffold and modifications to the scaffold were explored in both projects. In order to modulate …

Sustained Cell Differentiation Of 2d H9 Human Embryonic Stem Cells Into Mesenchymal Stem Cells, Hannah M. Christian

UCARE Research Products

This experiment consisted of the controlled differentiation of H9 embryonic stem cells to mesenchymal stem cells. Though this experiment was repeated twice and improvement was seen in these repetitions, the cells were only able to be partially differentiated. However, the morphology of the differentiated cells is similar to those of healthy adult mesenchymal stem cells.

The progression of the differentiation can be seen in the microscope slide photos below. Throughout the differentiation, there occurred a decrease in cell survival and reduction of cell growth, but an increase in mesenchymal stem cell morphology. Throughout the last week of the differentiation, very …