Next generation seuquencing of 3D breast cancer cell culture in synthetic hydrogels presenting either a collagen mimic or laminin mimic

MDA-MB-231 (ER-) and T47D (ER+) breast cancer cells were encapsulated in synthetic hydrogels, formed with a multi-arm bioinert polymer poly(ethylene glycol), cell-degradable peptide crosslinks, and receptor-binding pendant peptides, and cultured for 3 days to assess initial cell responses to different matrix compositions. The synthetic matrices had a Young's modulus (E) ~ 0.6 kPa, in the range of bone marrow and healthy mammary tissue, and biochemcial cues to mimic binding sites found in collagen (GFOGER peptide) or laminin (IKVAV peptide). After 3 days in culture, mRNA was collected and RNA-seq performed to compare cell responses between the collagen and laminin mimetic cultures. Examination of two different peptide compositions, collagen (GFOGER) and laminin (IKVAV), on two breast cancer cell lines MDA-MB-231 (ER-) and T47D (ER+) cultured in three dimensional PEG hydrogels for 3 days.