extracellular matrix

[Nature Aging] Pharmacological inhibition of Stat3 activation or genetic ablation of Stat3 in chondrocytes reversed aberrant accumulation of Runx2 and ECM-degrading enzymes and limited osteoarthritis deteriorations caused by kindlin-2 deficiency.

[Cancer Research] Investigators showed that LAMP2A expression was enriched in patient-derived glioblastoma stem cells (GSC), and its depletion diminished GSC-mediated tumorigenic activities.

[Nature Protocols] Researchers developed a protocol to visualize and quantify the spatiotemporal evolution of newly synthesized and deposited matrix by cells that are either cultured atop or embedded within biomaterial systems.

[Bone Research] Expression and lineage analysis showed selective expression of discoidin domain receptor 2 (Ddr2) at early stages of bone formation in the resting zone and proliferating chondrocytes and periosteum.

[Stem Cell Reports] Researchers determined that Laminin 411 alone increased endothelial differentiation of induced pluripotent stem cells over collagen I or Matrigel.

[Cell Death Discovery] To improve the effectiveness of naïve hair follicle-derived-MSC (HF-MSC) treatments on liver cirrhosis (LC), the authors used bioinformatic tools to identify an exogenous gene targeting hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) among the differentially expressed genes in LC to modify HF-MSCs.