Interpenetrating Alginate Network (IMAGE)

Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences

Interpenetrating Alginate Network

Caption

This diagram shows a cell encapsulated in an interpenetrating network of alginate (blue) and reconstituted basement membrane matrix (green). Integrin receptors on the cell membrane bind to ligands in the extracellular matrix. The alginate network stiffens the matrix without creating new biochemical bonds so that the researchers can study stiffness in isolation.

Credit

Image courtesy of Ovijit Chaudhuri, Harvard University.

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