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. Author manuscript; available in PMC: 2014 Dec 1.
Published in final edited form as: Biomaterials. 2013 Sep 7;34(37):9331–9340. doi: 10.1016/j.biomaterials.2013.08.016

Figure 3. Enzymatic and cellular remodeling of hydrogels proceeds in vitro.

Figure 3

A) Fluorescently labeled hydrogels were digested in a collagenase solution and release of the fluorophore followed an exponential with the release rate being significantly (P < 0.01) different across all conditions. B) A fluorescent assay for viability (green cells are live and red cells are dead) revealed that > 60% of cells are viable after 24 hours in culture (C) with similar viability for all cell types, and only the PC+0%PEG being significantly higher. D) By 72 hours, the viability was influenced by cell type and material with EC-only being the worst. Viability of co-cultures were comparable to the earlier time point.. E) Shear moduli of the hydrogels were significantly different for each formulation at each time point. There were no significant trends over time in the shear moduli of the PC+0%PEG or the PC+2%PEG conditions, but a slight downward trend was observed in the shear modulus of the PC+1%PEG condition. For panels C, D, and E, significant comparisons are indicated on the graphs with matched symbols (P < 0.05). F) Constructs were cast as plugs with an initial diameter of 4.7 mm and measured again after 14 days of culture. The diameters significantly decreased with all being different (P < 0.01) unless otherwise noted (ns).