Development of hydrogels functionalized with cell adhesive peptide and growth factors for control of endothelial cell activities for therapeutic angiogenesis

摘要

In this study, we prepared hydrogels in situ immobilized with a RGD peptide and bFGF, and found that they significantly facilitated the adhesion and proliferation of HUVECs, enabling us to generate a confluent monolayer. The harvested cell layer was then directly transplanted from the hydrogels to ischemic hindlimbs of nude mice, which enhanced therapeutic angiogenesis for over 14 days. In vivo tracking demonstrated prolonged retention of the transplanted HUVEC layer at the injury site.