Spontaneous Helical Structure Formation in Laminin Nanofibers.

ABSTRACT: Laminin is a cross-shaped heterotrimer composed of three polypeptides chains that assembles into an insoluble extracellular matrix (ECM) network as part of the basement membrane, serving a vital role in many processes such as embryonic development, differentiation, and muscle and nerve regeneration. Here we engineered monodisperse laminin nanofibers using a surface-initiated assembly technique in order to investigate how changes in protein composition affect formation and structure of the network. Specifically, we compared laminin 111 with varying degrees of purity and with and without entactin to determine whether these changes alter biophysical properties. All the laminin types were reproducibly patterned as 200 μm long, 20 μm wide nanofibers that were successfuly released during surface

SUBMITTER: Szymanski JM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4675171 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature