Premium
Evaluation of the effect of 3D porous Chitosan‐alginate scaffold stiffness on breast cancer proliferation and migration
Author(s) -
Le MinhChau N.,
Xu Kailei,
Wang Zi,
Beverung Sean,
Steward Robert L.,
Florczyk Stephanie J.
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
journal of biomedical materials research part a
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.849
H-Index - 150
eISSN - 1552-4965
pISSN - 1549-3296
DOI - 10.1002/jbm.a.37191
Subject(s) - extracellular matrix , mechanotransduction , scaffold , integrin , materials science , cell growth , cell culture , focal adhesion , microbiology and biotechnology , cell migration , cell adhesion , biophysics , cell , adhesion , chemistry , biomedical engineering , biology , biochemistry , medicine , composite material , genetics
Breast cancer (BCa) is one of the most common cancers for women and metastatic BCa causes the majority of deaths. The extracellular matrix (ECM) stiffens during cancer progression and provides biophysical signals to modulate proliferation, morphology, and metastasis. Cells utilize mechanotransduction and integrins to sense and respond to ECM stiffness. Chitosan‐alginate (CA) scaffolds have been used for 3D culture, but lack integrin binding ligands, resulting in round cell morphology and limited cell‐material interaction. In this study, 2, 4, and 6 wt% CA scaffolds were produced to mimic the stages of BCa progression and evaluate the BCa response to CA scaffold stiffness. All three CA scaffold compositions highly porous with interconnected pores and scaffold stiffness increased with increasing polymer concentration. MDA‐MB‐231 (231) cells were cultured in CA scaffolds and 2D cultures for 7 d. All CA scaffold cultures had similar cell numbers at 7 d and the 231 cells formed clusters that increased in size during the culture. The 2 wt% CA had the largest clusters throughout the 7 d culture compared with the 4 and 6 wt% CA. The 231 cell migration was evaluated on 2D surfaces after 7 d culture. The 6 wt% CA cultured cells had the greatest migration speed, followed by 4 wt% CA, 2D cultures, and 2 wt% CA. These results suggest that 231 cells sensed the stiffness of CA scaffolds without the presence of focal adhesions. This indicates that a non‐integrin‐based mechanism may explain the observed mechanotransduction response.