Extracellular Matrix News Volume 9.23 | Jun 14 2018

TOP STORY

Regenerative Bandage Accelerates Healing in Diabetic Wounds

A team has developed a new device, called a regenerative bandage, that quickly heals these painful, hard-to-treat sores without using drugs. During head-to-head tests, the bandage healed diabetic wounds 33 percent faster than one of the most popular bandages currently on the market. [Press release from Northwestern University discussing online prepublication in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences] Press Release | Abstract

(Ranked by impact factor of the journal)

Downregulation of HS6ST2 by miR-23b-3p Enhances Matrix Degradation through p38 MAPK Pathway in Osteoarthritis

Downregulation of HS6ST2 regulated by overexpression of miR-23b-3p and siRNAs against HS6ST2 could enhance the protein level of MMP13 and aggravate the matrix degradation in chondrocytes. Increased expression of MMP13 depended on activity of p38 MAPK rather than total p38 MAPK level and was abrogated by HS6ST2 overexpression. [Cell Death Dis] Full Article

Actin Cytoskeleton Assembly Regulates Collagen Production via TGF-Β Type II Receptor in Human Skin Fibroblasts

The authors report that disassembly of the actin cytoskeleton resulted in impairment of TGF‐β pathway, which controls collagen production, in dermal fibroblasts. Cytoskeleton disassembly rapidly down‐regulated TGF‐β type II receptor levels. This down‐regulation lead to reduced activation of downstream effectors Smad2/Smad3 and CCN2, resulting in decreased collagen production. [J Cell Mol Med] Full Article

Bioengineered Bile Ducts Recapitulate Key Cholangiocyte Functions

Scientists showed a step-wise method for the differentiation of murine Lgr5⁺ liver stem cells into cholangiocyte-like cells using a combination of growth factors and extracellular matrix components. Integration of organoid-derived cholangiocytes with collagen-coated polyethersulfone hollow fiber membranes yielded bioengineered bile ducts that morphologically resembled native bile ducts and possessed polarized bile acid transport activity. [Biofabrication] Abstract

CD44-Dependent Inflammation, Fibrogenesis, and Collagenolysis Regulates Extracellular Matrix Remodeling and Tensile Strength during Cutaneous Wound Healing

Researchers demonstrated that in an excisional biopsy punch wound healing model, CD44-null mice had increased inflammatory and reduced fibrogenic responses during early phases of wound healing. At wound closure, CD44-null mice exhibited reduced collagen degradation leading to increased accumulation of fibrillar collagen, which persisted after wound closure leading to reduced tensile strength resulting in a more severe scarring phenotype compared to WT mice. [Matrix Biol] Abstract

Regulation of Extracellular Matrix Elements and Sarcomerogenesis in Response to Different Periods of Passive Stretching in the Soleus Muscle of Rats

Scientists evaluated the expression of fibrillar collagens, sarcomerogenesis, metalloproteinase (MMP) activity and gene expression of the ECM regulators in the soleus muscle of rats submitted to different stretching periods. Sarcomerogenesis, muscle cross-sectional area, and MMP activity and mRNA levels in collagen, connective tissue growth factor, growth factor-beta, and lysyl oxidase were analyzed. [Sci Rep] Full Article

Notochordal Cell Matrix as a Bioactive Lubricant for the Osteoarthritic Joint

Chondrocyte-seeded alginate beads were cultured in base medium (BM), BM with notochordal cell derived matrix (NCM), or BM with TGF-β1 (TGF), as well as BM and NCM treated with IL-1β. NCM increased GAG deposition and cell proliferation, and GAG/DNA ratio and hydroxyproline content. [Sci Rep] Full Article

RECK Isoforms Have Opposing Effects on Cell Migration

The authors investigated whether alternative isoform use can affect cell migration focusing on REversion-inducing-Cysteine-rich protein with Kazal motifs (RECK), an established inhibitor of cell migration. They found that a shorter isoform of RECK is more highly expressed in proliferating fibroblasts, in TGF-β treated fibroblasts and in tumors compared with differentiated tissue. [Mol Biol Cell] Abstract | Full Article

Caveolin-1 Scaffolding Domain Peptides Alleviate Liver Fibrosis by Inhibiting TGF-β1/Smad Signaling in Mice

To evaluate the role of caveolin-1 (Cav1) in liver fibrosis, Cav1 deficient (Cav1^−/−) and wild type (WT) mice were subjected to liver fibrosis induced by carbon tetrachloride (CCl₄). After CCl₄ administration, Cav1^−/− mice showed enhanced transforming growth factor β1 (TGF-β1) signaling, as reflected by a significantly greater amount of phosphorylation of Smad2 and collagen deposition in livers over WT animals. In vitro studied indicated that phosphorylation of Smad2 was inhibited after Cav1 scaffolding domain peptide treatment, accompanied by decreased protein levels of α-SMA, collagen α1(I), and collagen α1(III) in hepatic stellate cells. [Int J Mol Sci] Full Article

Effects of Press-Fit Biphasic (Collagen and HA/βTCP) Scaffold with Cell-Based Therapy on Cartilage and Subchondral Bone Repair Knee Defect in Rabbits

Researchers explore the therapeutic potential of cartilage regeneration using a new biphasic scaffold (type I collagen/hydroxyapatite) previously loaded or not with concentrated bone marrow cells. [Int Orthop] Abstract

Role of Liquid-Liquid Phase Separation in Assembly of Elastin and Other Extracellular Matrix Proteins

Whether phase separation is intracellular or extracellular, reversible or network-forming, understanding the sequence determinants of such varied assembly behaviors and differential fates of the colloidal droplets will provide important insights into aberrant assembly with pathological consequences and elucidate fundamental principles for the rational design of biomimetic materials. [J Mol Biol] Abstract

Protein Polymer-Based Nanoparticles: Fabrication and Medical Applications

Nanoparticles can be made from a variety of materials including metals, polysaccharides, and proteins. Biological protein-based nanoparticles such as silk, keratin, collagen, elastin, corn zein, and soy protein-based nanoparticles are advantageous in having biodegradability, bioavailability, and relatively low cost. The authors review the literature pertaining to protein-based nanoparticles with a focus on their application in drug delivery and biomedical fields. [Int J Mol Sci] Full Article

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

NuVasive Launches AttraX Scaffold Biologic and Reports First Clinical Use

NuVasive, Inc. announced the U.S. launch of AttraX^® Scaffold, an absorbent ceramic-collagen bone graft with an optimized surface that has been validated in preclinical testing to drive increased bone formation and faster fusion than traditional ceramic bone grafts. [NuVasive, Inc.] Press Release

Orig3n Announces Osteoarthritis Cartilage Regeneration for First Cell Therapy Program

Orig3n announced its focus on osteoarthritis indications for its Cartilage Regeneration Program, the company’s first iPS-derived cell therapy program. [Orig3n Inc. (PR Newswire Association LLC.)] Press Release

Wright Medical Group N.V. Announces FDA Premarket Approval for AUGMENT^® Injectable Bone Graft

Wright Medical Group N.V. announced that it has received premarket approval from the FDA for AUGMENT^® Injectable Bone Graft for the same clinical indications as AUGMENT^® Bone Graft. [Wright Medical Group N.V.] Press Release

China Introduces Sweeping Reforms to Crack Down on Academic Misconduct

China is getting tough on scientific misconduct. The country’s most powerful bodies, the Chinese Communist Party and the State Council, introduced a raft of reforms on 30 May aimed at improving integrity across the research spectrum, from funding and job applications to peer-review and publications. [Nature News] Editorial

More Restrictive U.S. Policy on Chinese Graduate Student Visas Raises Alarm

Reversing yet another policy of the previous administration, the U.S. Department of State began applying tougher restrictions on some Chinese graduate students. The new policy shortens from five years to one year the duration of visas for those planning to study aviation, robotics, and advanced manufacturing. [ScienceInsider] Editorial

Leading Salk Scientist Resigns after Allegations of Harassment

The prominent cancer biologist Inder Verma unconditionally resigned from the Salk Institute for Biological Studies in San Diego, California, June 6, and the research institute’s board of trustees voted unanimously to accept his resignation. [ScienceInsider] Editorial

Sexual Harassment Is Rife in the Sciences, Finds Landmark US Study

Sexual harassment is pervasive throughout academic science in the United States, driving talented researchers out of the field and harming others’ careers, finds a report from the US National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in Washington DC. The analysis concludes that policies to fight the problem are ineffective because they are set up to protect institutions, not victims — and that universities, funding agencies, scientific societies and other organizations must take stronger action. [Nature News] Editorial

North American Universities Increasingly Cancel Publisher Packages

Florida State University (FSU) will head into negotiations with the publisher Elsevier to see how it can resolve a pricing issue. Back in April, FSU announced that it would not renew a so-called “big deal” with Elsevier in 2019, due to its “high and ever-increasing cost,” and would instead subscribe to a subset of the most-needed journals. [The Scientist] Editorial

NEW Keystone Symposia: Integrated Pathways of Disease in NASH and NAFLD
January 4-20, 2019
Santa Fe, New Mexico, United States

Visit our events page to see a complete list of events in the community.

NEW PhD Position – Mechanobiological Control over Tissue Differentiation (Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin)

NEW Postdoctoral Positions – Bone Tissue Regeneration (Stomatological Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University)

Research Associate – Regenerative Medicine (University of Bristol)

Postdoctoral Research Fellow – Skeletal Muscle and Tendon Connective Matrix Biology and Mechanotransduction (Weill Cornell Medical College)

Director – Davis Center for Regenerative Biology and Medicine (MDI Biological Laboratory)

Assistant, Associate or Full Professor – Regenerative Medicine (University of San Diego)

Full Professor – Biomedical Sciences (Dublin City University)

Postdoctoral Fellow – Bioengineering (Harvard University)

Postdoctoral Fellow – Matrix Biology and Reproduction (University of Texas Southwestern Medical School)

Postdoctoral Position – Bioengineering Cell Fate and Morphogenesis in Organoids (KU Leuven)

Faculty Position – Developmental Biology and Regenerative Medicine (Seattle Children’s Research Institute)

Postdoctoral Position – Cancer, Immunotherapy, and Fibrosis (University of Alabama at Birmingham)

Postdoctoral Position – Spinal Cord Injury (Nanyang Technological University)

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