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Functional Self-Assembling Peptide Nanofiber Hydrogels Designed for Nerve Degeneration

Authors :
Wei Xue
Yongnu Zhang
Xin-yu Fang
Wutian Wu
Songying Ouyang
Liumin He
Ramakrishna Seeram
Xiyong Song
Na Zhang
Wen Li
Xiaoli Wu
Yuqiao Sun
Source :
ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces. 8:2348-2359
Publication Year :
2016
Publisher :
American Chemical Society (ACS), 2016.

Abstract

Self-assembling peptide (SAP) RADA16-I (Ac-(RADA)4-CONH2) has been suffering from a main drawback associated with low pH, which damages cells and host tissues upon direct exposure. In this study, we presented a strategy to prepare nanofiber hydrogels from two designer SAPs at neutral pH. RADA16-I was appended with functional motifs containing cell adhesion peptide RGD and neurite outgrowth peptide IKVAV. The two SAPs were specially designed to have opposite net charges at neutral pH, the combination of which created a nanofiber hydrogel (-IKVAV/-RGD) characterized by significantly higher G' than G″ in a viscoelasticity examination. Circular dichroism, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and Raman measurements were performed to investigate the secondary structure of the designer SAPs, indicating that both the hydrophobic/hydrophilic properties and electrostatic interactions of the functional motifs play an important role in the self-assembling behavior of the designer SAPs. The neural progenitor cells (NPCs)/stem cells (NSCs) fully embedded in the 3D-IKVAV/-RGD nanofiber hydrogel survived, whereas those embedded within the RADA 16-I hydrogel hardly survived. Moreover, the -IKVAV/-RGD nanofiber hydrogel supported NPC/NSC neuron and astrocyte differentiation in a 3D environment without adding extra growth factors. Studies of three nerve injury models, including sciatic nerve defect, intracerebral hemorrhage, and spinal cord transection, indicated that the designer -IKVAV/-RGD nanofiber hydrogel provided a more permissive environment for nerve regeneration than the RADA 16-I hydrogel. Therefore, we reported a new mechanism that might be beneficial for the synthesis of SAPs for in vitro 3D cell culture and nerve regeneration.

Details

ISSN :
19448252 and 19448244
Volume :
8
Database :
OpenAIRE
Journal :
ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces
Accession number :
edsair.doi.dedup.....abc243f5c61d56e26358f1e0787b79e0
Full Text :
https://doi.org/10.1021/acsami.5b11473