A better way to change the fate of stem cells

Researchers at the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences and The Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering have developed a new, more precise way to control the differentiation of stem cells into bone cells. This new technique has promising applications in the realm of bone regeneration, growth and healing. The research led by David Mooney , the Robert P. Pinkas Family Professor of Bioengineering at SEAS, was published. A cell's microenvironment, the network of proteins and polymers that surrounds and connects cells within tissues, impacts a range of cellular behaviors, including stem cell differentiation. For about a decade, researchers have been able to direct the fate of stem cells by tuning the stiffness of its microenvironment, also known as the extracellular matrix. The problem with only tuning stiffness is that it assumes the environment behaves like an elastic material, like rubber. When a strain or deformation is exerted on an elastic material, elastic energy is stored and when the deformation is released, the material bounces back to its original shape like a rubber band.