Microfluidic Generation of Composite Biopolymer Microgelswith Tunable Compositions and Mechanical Properties.

To develop an understanding of thenature of complex, spatiotemporalinteractions between cells and the extracellular matrix (ECM), artificialECMs formed from hydrogels with a particular spectrum of propertiesare being developed at a rapid pace. We report the microfluidic generationof small, monodisperse composite agarose–gelatin hydrogel modules(microgel particles) that can be used for cell encapsulation and canserve as instructive cellular microenvironments. The agarose componentof the microgels gelled under reduced temperature, while gelatin modifiedwith phenolic hydroxyl groups underwent peroxidase-catalyzed gelation.Microgel composition, structure, morphology, and rigidity were tunedin a high-throughput manner. The results of this work are importantfor the generation of libraries of cell-laden polymer microgels forsingle-cell analysis, tissue engineering, and fundamental studiesof the role of local microenvironments in cell fate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]