Extracellular Matrix News Volume 10.25 | Jul 4 2019

TOP STORY

Platelet Hyaluronidase-2 Regulates the Early Stages of Inflammatory Disease in Colitis

Scientists provide evidence that hyaluronan (HA) catabolism was disrupted in human intestinal microvascular endothelial cells isolated from inflammatory bowel disease patients. They demonstrated that platelets, via HYAL2-dependent degradation of endothelial HA, regulated the early stages of inflammation in colitis by limiting leukocyte extravasation. [Blood] Abstract

(Ranked by impact factor of the journal)

WDFY2 Restrains Matrix Metalloproteinase Secretion and Cell Invasion by Controlling VAMP3-Dependent Recycling

WDFY2 knockout caused a strong redistribution of VAMP3 into small vesicles near the plasma membrane. This was accompanied by increased, VAMP3-dependent secretion of MT1-matrix metalloproteinase, enhanced degradation of ECM, and increased cell invasion. [Nat Commun] Full Article

High-Frequency Microrheology in 3D Reveals Mismatch between Cytoskeletal and Extracellular Matrix Mechanics

Nonmalignant breast epithelial cells showed a similar viscoelasticity to that measured for the local ECM when cultured in 3D laminin-rich ECM. In contrast, the malignant counterpart was stiffer than the local environment. Investigators confirmed that other mammary cancer cells embedded in tissue-mimetic hydrogels were nearly four-fold stiffer than the surrounding ECM. [Proc Natl Acad Sci USA] Abstract

Glycosaminoglycan Functionalization of Electrospun Scaffolds Enhances Schwann Cell Activity

The authors found that both aligned and random fiber scaffolds functionalized with glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) resulted in increased cell proliferation on day one. In addition, aligned functionalized scaffolds also resulted in increased GAG presence on day one, probably because of cell ECM formation and an increased syndecan-4 expression on day seven. [Acta Biomater] Abstract | Graphical Abstract

Chanzyme TRPM7 Protects against Cardiovascular Inflammation and Fibrosis

Cardiac collagen and fibronectin content, expression of pro-inflammatory mediators and cytokines and phosphorylation of the pro-inflammatory signaling molecule Stat1, were increased in transient receptor potential melastatin 7 (TRPM7)^+/Δkinase mice. These processes were associated with infiltration of inflammatory cells and increased galectin-3 expression. [Cardiovasc Res] Abstract

The Integrin αvβ6 Drives Pancreatic Cancer through Diverse Mechanisms and Represents an Effective Target for Therapy

In vitro, integrin αvβ6 promoted pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) cell growth, survival, migration and invasion. Treatment of both αvβ6-positive human PDAC xenografts and transgenic mice bearing αvβ6-positive PDAC with the αvβ6 blocking antibody 264RAD, combined with gemcitabine, significantly reduced tumor growth and increased survival. [J Pathol] Abstract

Redifferentiated Chondrocytes in Fibrin Gel for the Repair of Articular Cartilage Lesions

Redifferentiation of passaged chondrocytes by means of 3-dimensional culture in the presence of TGFβ3 improved the formation of cartilaginous tissues in vitro, and culture in fibrin gel did not affect the cell phenotype. Implantation of dedifferentiated cells in vivo resulted in fibrocartilaginous repair tissues. [Am J Sports Med] Abstract

Overexpression of Matrix Metalloproteinase-9 in Breast Cancer Cell Lines Remarkably Increases the Cell Malignancy Largely via Activation of Transforming Growth Factor Beta/SMAD Signaling

Researchers investigated the associations of matrix metalloproteinase 9 (MMP-9) with the activation of transforming growth factor beta (TGF-β)/SMAD signaling and the malignancy of breast malignant tumor cells. The distributions of MMP-9 and TGF-β in the tissues of canine breast cancers were screened by immunohistochemical assays. A recombinant plasmid expressing mouse MMP-9 was generated and transiently transfected into three different breast cancer cell lines. [Cell Prolif] Full Article

Extracellular Matrix Stiffness Regulates Human Airway Smooth Muscle Contraction by Altering the Cell-Cell Coupling

Investigators demonstrated that ECM stiffness acted as a switch that regulated whether smooth muscle force was transmitted through the ECM or through cell-cell connections. Fluorescent imaging for adherens junctions and focal adhesions showed the progressive loss of cell-cell borders and the appearance of focal adhesions with the increase in ECM stiffness. [Sci Rep] Full Article

Macrophages Promote a Profibrotic Phenotype in Orbital Fibroblasts through Increased Hyaluronic Acid Production and Cell Contractility

Macrophages had a minimal effect on lipid droplet formation in fibroblasts, but significantly increased hyaluronic acid production and cell contractility, suggesting that they may promote the fibrotic phenotype. This effect was found to be mediated at least in part through phosphatidylinositol-4,5-bisphosphate 3-kinase activation and linked to an increase in actin polymerization and protrusive activity in fibroblasts. [Sci Rep] Full Article

Alteration of the Extracellular Matrix and Alpha-Gal Antigens in the Rat Lung Scaffold Reseeded Using Human Vascular and Adipogenic Stromal Cells

Scientists evaluated ECM damage and reconstruction of the decellularized- recellularized rat lung, including the removal of alpha-gal xenoantigens. Rat lungs were perfused with sodium dodecyl sulfate and Triton X-100 via the pulmonary artery, after which the decellularized scaffold was reseeded with rat or human endothelial cells and adipose mesenchymal stem cells. [J Tissue Eng Regen Med] Abstract

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YAP and TAZ: A Signaling Hub of the Tumor Microenvironment

The authors review the emerging role of YAP and TAZ in choreographing tumor-stromal interactions. Recognizing YAP and TAZ as a hub of the network of signals exchanged within the tumor microenvironment provides a fresh perspective on the molecular principles of tumor self-organization, promising to unveil numerous new vulnerabilities. [Nat Rev Cancer] Abstract

The Roles of Perineuronal Nets and the Perinodal Extracellular Matrix in Neuronal Function

Recent work has revealed the importance of perineuronal nets (PNNs) in controlling plasticity in the CNS. Digestion, blocking or removal of PNNs influences functional recovery after a variety of CNS lesions. PNNs have further been shown to be involved in the regulation of memory and have been implicated in a number of psychiatric disorders. [Nat Rev Neurosci] Abstract

Visit our reviews page to see a complete list of reviews in the extracellular matrix research field.

MU Receives $8.6 Million Federal Grant for New Biomedical Research Center

The University of Missouri (MU) announced that researchers in the College of Agriculture, Food and Natural Resources have received an $8.6 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to establish a new national research center. The Swine Somatic Cell Genome Editing Center will focus on aiding the development of biomedical treatments for human diseases such as cystic fibrosis. [The University of Missouri] Press Release

UA Professor Receives $1.13M Federal Grant to Further Develop 3D Breast Tumor Models

Dr. Hossein Tavana, an associate professor of biomedical engineering at The University of Akron (UA), has received a grant of $1.13 million from the prestigious National Cancer Institute to further develop 3D tumor models of triple-negative breast cancer — which may improve drug testing and lead to the discovery of new, more effective anticancer drugs. [The University of Akron] Press Release

Hungarian Law Wrests Control of Research from Scientific Academy

The Hungarian Parliament passed a bill that takes control for funding Hungarian research bodies away from the Hungarian Academy of Sciences and gives it to a government-led committee, Reuters reports. [The Scientist] Editorial

Taiwan to Crack Down on Unauthorized Research Collaborations with Mainland China

According to Taiwan’s Central News Agency, the island’s government is investigating seven researchers for allegedly joining a prestigious program sponsored by the mainland China government to lure academics to the mainland without the necessary permissions. [Nature News] Editorial

NEW Keystone Symposia: Tumor Metabolism
March 8-12, 2020
Banff, Alberta, Canada

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NEW Postdoctoral Fellow – ECM Remodeling & Cancer Invasion Research (Luxembourg Institute of Health)

Scientist – Matrix Biology (STEMCELL Technologies Inc.)

Postdoctoral Fellow – Role of Collagen in Tissue Repair & Regeneration (University of Pennsylvania)

Research Lab Specialist – Tumor Microenvironment & Cell Behavior (University of Southern California)

Postdoctoral Postions – Tissue Engineering (University of Oslo)

Faculty Positions – Biochemistry & Molecular Biophysics (Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine)

Postdoctoral Position – Bioengineering Cell Fate & Morphogeneis in Organoids (KU Leuven)

Postdoctoral Research Fellowships – Kidney Disease (Vanderbilt University Medical Center)

Postdoctoral Position – Experimental Systems Biology of Lung Regeneration & Fibrosis (Helmholtz Zentrum München)

Postdoctoral Fellowship – Renal Extracellular Matrix Research (Vanderbilt University Medical Center)

Postdoctoral Scholar – Computational Modeling of Cell-Matrix Interactions (Washington University, St. Louis)

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