Biometric heterogeneous hydogels for 3D culture

Conventional hydrogels, typically covalently crosslinked, have restrictive network structures that inhibit key cellular activities including proliferation, migration, and assembly in 3D culture. We have developed a patented technology for preparing cell-adaptable supramolecular hydrogels crosslinked with reversible physical bonds and chemically-defined composition. These hydrogels can effectively support the rapid proliferation, excessive cell migration, and timely assembly of varying cell types including stem cells, tumor cells, endothelial cells, and neural cells encapsulated within the 3D hydrogel matrix. As the result, these hydrogels can promote the formation of different organoids including tumor, blood vessel, skin, nerve, etc. Mechanistically, these cell-adaptable hydrogels enhance the mechanosensing-dependent cytoskeletal remodeling, metabolic activity, and paracrine function of encapsulated cells, which are essential to various developmental processes. Furthermore, free from the interference from unknown and unpredictable biological factors typically found in other commercial hydrogels used for organoid culture, the chemical composition our synthetic supramolecular hydrogels are well-defined and therefore highly desirable for the culture of organoids intended for drug testing and screening. The degradable version of our hydrogel can be degraded within 10 mins by a cell-compatible small molecule without using trypsin to retrieve the cultured cell/organoids without harming the cell surface markers. We further demonstrate that such hydrogels supported in situ tissue regeneration via the delivery of therapeutic cells and drugs. Such dynamic hydrogels are not only desirable for potential clinical applications but also useful for 3D culture of cells and organoids to assist basic studies.

Prof. Bian Liming is currently a Changjiang Scholar Professor and the Associate Dean in the School of Biomedical Sciences and Engineering at the South China University of Technology after serving as a tenured professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. Prof. Bian completed his Ph.D. study in Biomedical Engineering at Columbia University in 2009. Prof. Liming Bian then conducted his postdoctoral research in the Department of Bioengineering, the University of Pennsylvania from 2009 to 2012. Prof. Bian’s research focuses on the development of novel multiscale biomaterials not only for investigating the role of cell microenvironment factors on stem cell behaviors but also for facilitating the regeneration of diseased or injured tissues and organs. Prof. Bian’s research work has been published in the leading journals including Science Translational Medicine, PNAS, Nature Chemistry, Nature Communications, Science Advances, Advanced Materials, JACS, Angew Chemie, etc. Prof. Bian is a fellow of IUSBSE (FBSE). Prof. Bian serves as the associate editor of APL Bioengineering and editorial member of Biomaterials, ACS Biomaterials Science and Engineering, ACS Applied Polymeric Materials, Bone Research, BMEMat.