Fig. 2
From: Reconstructing the pulmonary niche with stem cells: a lung story
Recapitulating the lung cell-ECM interaction in vitro. a Cell-ECM interaction during in vivo branching morphogenesis. Fgf10 in the mesenchyme surrounding the branching tips specifies the Sox9/ID2 positive cell fate. b Schematics showing how engineered ECM can modulate cellular interactions with key morphogenic growth factors (such as FGF10) in human lung stem cell engineering. Traditional FGF10 is delivered in its free soluble form. Using functionalized ECM with enhanced affinity to FGF10, such as that modified with heparin, more durable bioactivity and biomimetic ECM association can be introduced. Further, spatial specific delivery or activation of growth factors, using approaches such as photo-activatable biomaterials, can offer further control over directed tissue formation, mimicking the mechanism underlying native branching morphogenesis. P/D, proximal/distal