Recapitulation of growth factor-enriched microenvironment via BMP receptor activating hydrogel

Exposure to a growth factor abundant milieu has remarkable regenerative and rejuvenating effects on organ diseases, tissue damage, and regeneration, including skeletal system defects and bone regeneration. Although the introduction of candidate growth factors into relevant fields has been reported, their regenerative effects remain unsatisfactory, mainly because of the experimental challenges with limited types of growth factors, elusive dosage adjustment, and asynchronous stem cell activation with cytokine secretion. Here, an innovative hydrogel recapitulating a growth factor-enriched microenvironment (GEM) for regenerative advantage, is reported. This sulfated hydrogel includes bone morphogenetic protein-2 (BMP-2), an essential growth factor in osteogenesis, to direct mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) differentiation, stimulate cell proliferation, and improve bone formation. The semi-synthetic hydrogel, sulfonated gelatin (S-Gelatin), can amplify BMP-2 signaling in mouse MSCs by enhancing the binding between BMP-2 and BMP-2 type II receptors (BMPR2), which are located on MSC nuclei and activated by the hydrogel. Importantly, the dramatically improved cytokine secretion of MSCs throughout regeneration confirms the growth factor-acquiring potential of S-Gelatin/rhBMP-2 hydrogel, leading to the vascularization enhancement. These findings provide a new strategy to achieve an in situ GEM and accelerated bone regeneration by amplifying the regenerative capacity of rhBMP-2 and capturing endogenous growth factors.