Extracellular matrix-modified fiber scaffolds as a pro-adipogenic mesenchymal stromal cell delivery platform

Melt electrowriting (MEW) is an additive manufacturing technology that produces readily-handleable fibrous scaffolds with controlled geometry to support cell infiltration. Although MEW scaffolds have excellent potential for cell delivery in regenerative medicine applications, studies to date have primarily focused on polymers such as poly(e-caprolactone) (PCL) that lack bioactive cues to affect cell function. To address this aspect, MEW scaffolds with extracellular matrix (ECM) coatings were developed as a pro-adipogenic platform for human mesenchymal stromal cells (hMSCs). More specifically, highly flexible PCL scaffolds fabricated through MEW were coated with a complex ECM suspension prepared from human decellularized adipose tissue (DAT), purified fibronectin (FN) or laminin (LN) to determine the effects of two key bioactive proteins present within adipose-derived ECM. In vitro studies exploring the response of human bone marrow-derived MSCs cultured under adipogenic differentiation conditions indicate...