Attachement and spreading of fibroblasts on an RGD peptide-modified injectable hyaluronan hydrogel

Hyaluronan (HA) hydrogels resist attachment and spreading of fibroblasts and most other mammalian cell types. A thiol-modified HA (3,3'-dithiobis(propanoic dihydrazide) [HA-DTPH]) was modified with peptides containing the Arg-Gly-Asp (RGD) sequence and then crosslinked with polyethylene glycol (PEG) diacrylate (PEGDA) to create a biomaterial that supported cell attachment, spreading, and proliferation. The hydrogels were evaluated in vitro and in vivo in three assay systems. First, the behavior of human and murine fibroblasts on the surface of the hydrogels was evaluated. The concentration and structure of the RGD peptides and the length of the PEG spacer influenced cell attachment and spre…