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Integr Biol (Camb) 2020 06;12(6):161-174

Department of Biomedical Engineering, The University of Texas, Austin, TX, USA.

Soft tissue tumors, including breast cancer, become stiffer throughout disease progression. This increase in stiffness has been shown to correlate to malignant phenotype and epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) in vitro. Unlike current models, utilizing static increases in matrix stiffness, our group has previously created a system that allows for dynamic stiffening of an alginate-matrigel composite hydrogel to mirror the native dynamic process. Read More

Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2019 02 12;116(9):3502-3507. Epub 2019 Feb 12.

Material Science Program, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093;

Breast cancer development is associated with increasing tissue stiffness over years. To more accurately mimic the onset of gradual matrix stiffening, which is not feasible with conventional static hydrogels, mammary epithelial cells (MECs) were cultured on methacrylated hyaluronic acid hydrogels whose stiffness can be dynamically modulated from "normal" (<150 Pascals) to "malignant" (>3,000 Pascals) via two-stage polymerization. MECs form and remain as spheroids, but begin to lose epithelial characteristics and gain mesenchymal morphology upon matrix stiffening. Read More

Acta Biomater 2017 01 18;48:258-269. Epub 2016 Oct 18.

Weldon School of Biomedical Engineering, Purdue University, West Lafayette, IN 47907, USA; Department of Biomedical Engineering, Purdue School of Engineering & Technology, Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis, Indianapolis, IN 46202, USA; Indiana University Melvin and Bren Simon Cancer Center, Indianapolis, IN 46202, USA. Electronic address:

The complex network of biochemical and biophysical cues in the pancreatic desmoplasia not only presents challenges to the fundamental understanding of tumor progression, but also hinders the development of therapeutic strategies against pancreatic cancer. Residing in the desmoplasia, pancreatic stellate cells (PSCs) are the major stromal cells affecting the growth and metastasis of pancreatic cancer cells by means of paracrine effects and extracellular matrix protein deposition. PSCs remain in a quiescent/dormant state until they are 'activated' by various environmental cues. Read More

Rep Prog Phys 2019 06 4;82(6):064602. Epub 2019 Apr 4.

The minimal structural unit of a solid tumor is a single cell or a cellular compartment such as the nucleus. A closer look inside the cells reveals that there are functional compartments or even structural domains determining the overall properties of a cell such as the mechanical phenotype. The mechanical interaction of these living cells leads to the complex organization such as compartments, tissues and organs of organisms including mammals. Read More