Table of Contents
Role of laser beams in tissue engineering
The properties of laser beams generated from fiber laser systems remain largely understudied, which is why fiber lasers could be used in various fields of laser applications. For example, a group of researchers from Washington uses the light emitted from a laser beam to tether and untether signal proteins to the scaffolds that participate in tissue engineering.
Importance and fragility of signal proteins
These proteins transmit special signals in order to manage cell migration, division, and differentiation; they play a crucial role in growing tissues. The proteins are highly fragile, which is why conventional techniques applied to save proteins on scaffolds may destroy more than 90% of the proteins’ functionality. It is planned that the new laser technology enables the researchers to load a hydrogel (scaffold) with numerous types of protein signals and then treat the hydrogel with light from a laser beam emitted by a laser system to untether proteins from specific sections of the material.
Creating signal protein patterns
By treating only the hydrogels with the laser beam light, the laser technology allows the researchers to manage where protein signals continue to be tethered to the hydrogel. The main aim of such a process is the creation of signal protein patterns throughout a biomaterial scaffold to grow tissues consisting of different types of cells.
Chemical tethering and photo release of proteins
The proteins are changed, so it is possible to tether them chemically to the scaffold with the help of light emitted by the laser beam. Moreover, by treating the tethers to light produced by a laser system, it is possible to make the mentioned above proteins photo-release.
Testing laser system technology with hydrogels
This laser system technique has been tested by applying a hydrogel loaded with a protein signal. Members of the research team implemented a human cell line into the hydrogel and supervised the growth factors binding to the cell membranes. The main component of the experiment was a laser beam generated by a laser system to untether the protein signals on one side only of a certain cell.
Different responses of tethered and untethered proteins
On the tethered side, the proteins stayed on the outside of the cell since they were still stuck to the hydrogel. On the untethered side, the protein signals were assimilated by the cell. Therefore, now it is possible to ensure that different cells or their different part may get different environmental protein signals due to the laser technology based on the use of laser beam light.
This laser system technology offers highly accurate control at the single-cell level that could be applied not only in tissue engineering but potentially in basic research in cell biology, for better understanding the principle of protein signals’ operation together to manage cell differentiation, heal diseased tissue, and promote human development.