Toward a comprehensively characterized extract of Wharton's jelly extracellular matrix for the formulation of human...

Human extracellular matrices (ECMs) are attractive candidates to form natural 2D coatings and/or 2D networks such as hydrogels dedicated to tissue engineering or drug delivery. More specifically, self-assembling hydrogels built upon those ECMs closely mimic the structural, mechanical and biological properties of native ECM. However, such hydrogels require high collagen concentrations, commonly obtained using xenogeneic enzymes or harsh chemicals, limiting translational potential. We developed a rapid, cost-effective and xenogeneic enzymes free protocol enhancing the yield of collagens and proteoglycans extracted from the Wharton's Jelly (WJ) ECM. This protocol combines mechanical disruption with chemical/physical extraction in acetic acid associated or not with ultrasound. Ultrasonication increases collagen and glycosaminoglycans concentrations, while increasing their diversity. Moreover, collagen secondary structure, which is of importance for cytocompatibility and self-assembling hydrogel formation, was shown to be conserved using various techniques. After confirming WJ-ECM cytocompatibility, the study then focused on the development of self-assembled WJ-MEC based hydrogel, which exhibited softer rheological properties compared to type I collagen hydrogels. Thus, we propose a method to extract from a perinatal tissue, an ECM of complex composition including structurally intact human collagen, in large quantity, at reduced costs. The resulting ECM-based hydrogels produced by self-assembling offer great potential for various applications, including bioactive coatings for tissue engineering, wound dressings and injectable hydrogels for drug delivery.