ORCID Profile
0000-0002-1509-5116
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Publisher: Springer Singapore
Date: 2019
Publisher: Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
Date: 24-09-2021
DOI: 10.1101/2021.09.24.461639
Abstract: The emerging field of soft robotics aims to emulate dynamic physiological locomotion. Soft robotics’ mimicry of naturally complex biomechanics makes them ideal platforms for exerting mechanical stimuli for patient-specific tissue maturation and disease modeling applications. Such platforms are essential for emulating highly flexible tissues such as the kneecap’s femoropopliteal artery (FPA), one of the most flexible arteries in the body, which flexes and bends during walking, standing, and crouching movements. The FPA is a frequent site of disease, where 80% of all peripheral artery diseases manifest, affecting over 200 million people worldwide. The complex biomechanical and hemodynamic forces within the FPA have been implicated in the frequent occurrence of PAD and lead to debilitating morbidities, such as limb-threatening ischemia. To better mimic these complex biomechanics, we developed an in-vitro bio-hybrid soft robot (BSR). First, Platsil OO-20 was identified as an ideal hyperelastomer for both cell culture and BSR fabrication using 3D printed molds. Then, employing a simulation-based design workflow, we integrated pneumatic network (PneuNet) actuators cast with Platsil OO-20, which extend in angular, longitudinal, and radial dimensions. Pressurizing the BSR PneuNets enabled a range of mechanical stimuli to be dynamically applied during tissue culture to mimic normal and diseased FPA flexions during daily walking and sitting poses, the most extreme being radial distensions of 20% and angular flexions of 140°. Finally, these designed, manufactured, and programmed vascular BSRs were seeded with mesenchymal stem cells and conditioned for 24 hours to highlight the effect of dynamic conditioning on cultured cell alignment, as well as type IV collagen production and the upregulation of smooth muscle phenotypes. Soft robotic bioreactor platforms that accurately mimic patient-, disease-, and lifestyle-specific mechanobiology will develop fundamental disease understanding, preoperative laboratory simulations for existing therapeutics, and biomanufacturing platforms for tissue-engineered implants.
Publisher: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences
Date: 21-11-2018
Abstract: Clotting of blood is not exclusive to host physiology pathogens are also able to generate clots as part of their life cycle. Here, we show that coagulases, enzymes responsible for bacteria-mediated clotting, can act as public goods in clinical conditions. Coagulases, secreted by producers, generate protective layers of fibrin around the bacteria, shielding them from antimicrobials and host immune factors. Remarkably, we find that this protection is also conferred onto strains that do not produce coagulases but still benefit from those made by others. Although this is a social trait, overexploitation of coagulases does not occur due to spatial segregation and population viscosity. Our study provides a social evolution perspective on the critical role of coagulases.
Publisher: Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC)
Date: 2020
DOI: 10.1039/D0AN01294G
Abstract: A microchip coated with fluorogenic nanofilms demonstrates the potential to provide real-time information about protease activity using small s le volumes.
Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Date: 27-11-2020
DOI: 10.1038/S41522-020-00168-2
Abstract: Staphylococcus aureus is a prominent etiological agent of suppurative abscesses. In principle, abscess formation and purulent exudate are classical physiological features of healing and tissue repair. However, S. aureus deploys two coagulases that can usurp this classical host response and form distinct abscess lesions. Here, we establish that during coinfection with coagulase producers and non-producers, coagulases are shared public goods that contribute to staphylococcal persistence, abscess formation, and disease progression. Coagulase-negative mutants that do not produce the public goods themselves are able to exploit those cooperatively secreted by producers and thereby thrive during coinfection at the expense of others. This study shows the importance of social interactions among pathogens concerning clinical outcomes.
No related grants have been discovered for Cody Fell.