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

The Extracellular Matrix

The Extracellular Matrix

The Extracellular Matrix

The Extracellular Matrix

Overview
In order to maintain tissue organization, many animal cells are surrounded by structural molecules that make up the extracellular matrix (ECM). Together, the molecules in the ECM maintain the structural integrity of tissue as well as the remarkable specific properties of certain tissues.
Composition of the Extracellular Matrix
The extracellular matrix (ECM) is commonly composed of ground substance, a gel-like fluid, fibrous components, and many structurally and functionally diverse...

You might also read

Related Articles

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

Sort by

Same author

Critical role for drug delivery in the development of new ophthalmic treatments.

Future medicinal chemistry·2012

Same author

Heparin-modified dendrimer crosslinked collagen matrices for the delivery of heparin-binding epidermal growth factor.

Journal of biomedical materials research. Part A·2012

Same author

Photosensitive controlled release with polyethylene glycol-anthracene modified alginate.

European journal of pharmaceutics and biopharmaceutics : official journal of Arbeitsgemeinschaft fur Pharmazeutische Verfahrenstechnik e.V·2011

Same author

Corneal epithelial cell biocompatibility to silicone hydrogel and conventional hydrogel contact lens packaging solutions.

Molecular vision·2010

Same author

Dendrimer-grafted cell adhesion peptide-modified PDMS.

Biotechnology progress·2009

Same author

A high-density PEG interfacial layer alters the response to an EGF tethered polydimethylsiloxane surface.

Journal of biomaterials science. Polymer edition·2008

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: May 27, 2026

Microengineering 3D Collagen Hydrogels with Long-Range Fiber Alignment

Microengineering 3D Collagen Hydrogels with Long-Range Fiber Alignment

Published on: September 7, 2022

Modified dendrimer cross-linked collagen-based matrices.

M A Princz¹, H Sheardown

¹a Department of Chemical Engineering , McMaster University , 1280 Main Street W. , Hamilton , ON , Canada , L8S 4L8.

Journal of Biomaterials Science. Polymer Edition

|December 6, 2011

Summary

Dendrimer cross-linking creates strong collagen hydrogels. Commercially sourced collagens (PureCol, human collagen, and ECM) were tested, showing potential for tissue engineering despite varying stability.

Keywords:

Collagen dendrimers extracellular matrix heparin

More Related Videos

Imaging Denatured Collagen Strands In vivo and Ex vivo via Photo-triggered Hybridization of Caged Collagen Mimetic Peptides

Imaging Denatured Collagen Strands In vivo and Ex vivo via Photo-triggered Hybridization of Caged Collagen Mimetic Peptides

Published on: January 31, 2014

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: May 27, 2026

Microengineering 3D Collagen Hydrogels with Long-Range Fiber Alignment

Microengineering 3D Collagen Hydrogels with Long-Range Fiber Alignment

Published on: September 7, 2022

Imaging Denatured Collagen Strands In vivo and Ex vivo via Photo-triggered Hybridization of Caged Collagen Mimetic Peptides

Imaging Denatured Collagen Strands In vivo and Ex vivo via Photo-triggered Hybridization of Caged Collagen Mimetic Peptides

Published on: January 31, 2014

Area of Science:

Biomaterials Science
Tissue Engineering
Polymer Chemistry

Background:

Collagen hydrogels are crucial for tissue engineering.
Dendrimer cross-linking offers a method to enhance hydrogel properties.
Investigating commercial collagen sources is vital for practical applications.

Purpose of the Study:

To evaluate commercially available collagen products (PureCol, human collagen, human ECM) for dendrimer cross-linking.
To compare the stability and properties of these gels against a benchmark dendrimer-crosslinked collagen gel.
To assess the cell compatibility of the fabricated collagen-based hydrogels.

Main Methods:

Concentration of PureCol (PC), human collagen (HC), and human extracellular matrix (hECM).
Cross-linking using generation two polypropyleneimine octaamine dendrimers with EDC/NHS chemistry.
Fabrication of PC gels at 20 and 30 mg/ml concentrations.
Assessment of gel stability via collagenase digestion and swelling.
Evaluation of 3T3 fibroblast cell growth over four days.

Main Results:

PureCol (PC) gels exhibited increased swelling and reduced stability compared to benchmark dendrimer-crosslinked collagen gels (CG).
Highly purified bovine (PC) and human collagen (HC) gels showed similar performance but were less stable than CG gels.
Addition of hECM to PC created looser networks (PC-hECM gels) compared to heparinized dendrimer-crosslinked bovine collagen gels (CHG).
All tested collagen-based hydrogels supported 3T3 fibroblast cell proliferation.

Conclusions:

Commercially sourced collagens can be effectively cross-linked with dendrimers, but stability varies.
Purification and storage methods of commercial collagen products may influence hydrogel performance.
The developed collagen-based hydrogels demonstrate good cell compatibility, suggesting suitability for tissue engineering.