Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Related Concept Videos

Cell-matrix's Response to Mechanical Forces

Cell-matrix's Response to Mechanical Forces

In animal cells, the extracellular matrix allows cells within tissues to withstand external stresses and transmits signals from the outside of the cell to the inside. The extracellular matrix is extensive, and its composition varies between different types of tissues. For example, the reticular fibers and ground substance make up the ECM in loose connective tissue, while collagen and bone minerals make up the ECM of bone tissue.
Anchoring junctions mechanically attach a cell to the...

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

Assessing Transduction Efficiency And Cell Targeting By Cell-penetrating Peptides In The Mouse Lung.

Journal of visualized experiments : JoVE·2026

Same author

Beyond Breathing: Lung as a Sensory Organ A Report from the NHLBI Workshop on Lung Sensing and its Implication in Diseases.

American journal of respiratory cell and molecular biology·2026

Same author

miR-205-5p drives endothelial dysfunction and senescence in pulmonary fibrosis.

JCI insight·2026

Same author

Myeloperoxidase promotes fibrosis by inhibiting cathepsin K to bias the lung toward ECM accumulation.

bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology·2026

Same author

RUNX1 is a mediator of fibrotic activation and epigenetic memory in lung fibroblasts.

American journal of respiratory cell and molecular biology·2026

Same author

Novel association of <i>NAV3</i> with dilated cardiomyopathy and its role in cardiac fibrosis.

American journal of physiology. Heart and circulatory physiology·2026

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 1, 2026

Simple Polyacrylamide-based Multiwell Stiffness Assay for the Study of Stiffness-dependent Cell Responses

Simple Polyacrylamide-based Multiwell Stiffness Assay for the Study of Stiffness-dependent Cell Responses

Published on: March 25, 2015

A multiwell platform for studying stiffness-dependent cell biology.

Justin D Mih¹, Asma S Sharif, Fei Liu

¹Molecular and Integrative Physiological Sciences, Department of Environmental Health, Harvard School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America.

|June 4, 2011

Summary

Researchers developed a new method to culture cells on tissue-like stiffness using polyacrylamide (PA) hydrogels in multiwell plates. This technique allows for high-throughput screening of cell behavior and drug responses in physiologically relevant environments.

More Related Videos

A Novel Stretching Platform for Applications in Cell and Tissue Mechanobiology

A Novel Stretching Platform for Applications in Cell and Tissue Mechanobiology

Published on: June 3, 2014

A Multi-well Format Polyacrylamide-based Assay for Studying the Effect of Extracellular Matrix Stiffness on the Bacterial Infection of Adherent Cells

A Multi-well Format Polyacrylamide-based Assay for Studying the Effect of Extracellular Matrix Stiffness on the Bacterial Infection of Adherent Cells

Published on: July 5, 2018

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jun 1, 2026

Simple Polyacrylamide-based Multiwell Stiffness Assay for the Study of Stiffness-dependent Cell Responses

Simple Polyacrylamide-based Multiwell Stiffness Assay for the Study of Stiffness-dependent Cell Responses

Published on: March 25, 2015

A Novel Stretching Platform for Applications in Cell and Tissue Mechanobiology

A Novel Stretching Platform for Applications in Cell and Tissue Mechanobiology

Published on: June 3, 2014

A Multi-well Format Polyacrylamide-based Assay for Studying the Effect of Extracellular Matrix Stiffness on the Bacterial Infection of Adherent Cells

A Multi-well Format Polyacrylamide-based Assay for Studying the Effect of Extracellular Matrix Stiffness on the Bacterial Infection of Adherent Cells

Published on: July 5, 2018

Area of Science:

Biomaterials Science
Cell Biology
Biotechnology

Background:

Adherent cells are commonly cultured on rigid substrates, which differ significantly from their native, softer tissue environments.
This discrepancy can influence cellular behavior and experimental outcomes.
A need exists for methods enabling cell culture and screening in physiologically relevant stiffness contexts.

Purpose of the Study:

To develop a rapid method for fabricating multiwell platforms with tunable substrate stiffness for cell culture.
To enable routine screening of cellular responses across a range of tissue-relevant stiffnesses.
To investigate the impact of substrate stiffness on cell morphology, proliferation, and drug responses.

Main Methods:

Fabrication of polyacrylamide (PA) hydrogel platforms in 96 and 384 well plates.
Functionalization of hydrogels with collagen, with Young's modulus tunable from 0.3 to 55 kPa.
Culturing of 7 cell types, performing morphological analysis, and conducting assays for cell number, proliferation, and apoptosis using automated fluorescence microscopy.
Screening of 18 bioactive small molecules to assess stiffness-dependent drug effects.

Main Results:

Distinct morphological variations and growth profiles were observed across 7 cell types cultured on substrates with physiological stiffness ranges.
The stiffness-dependent growth of normal human lung fibroblasts was found to be largely independent of collagen density but amplified by serum concentration.
A screen of small molecules identified compounds with altered effects on soft versus rigid substrates, including blebbistatin's effect on lung fibroblast growth.

Conclusions:

The developed PA hydrogel multiwell platforms allow for high-throughput analysis of cells in tissue-relevant stiffness environments.
This method facilitates the discovery of cellular responses specific to particular stiffness regimes.
The findings open new avenues for drug discovery and understanding cell-matrix interactions.