The impact of substrate stiffness on morphological, transcriptional and functional aspects in RPE [miRNA-Seq]

To investigate the influence of stiffness as a major Bruch's membrane characteristic on the RPE transcriptome and morphology. ARPE-19 cells were plated on soft or stiff polyacrylamide gels (PA gels) or standard tissue culture plastic (TCP). We then performed gene expression profiling analysis using data obtained from Next-generation sequencing of small RNAs of ARPE-19 cells cultured on 3 different biomechanical conditions. Overall design: Comparative gene expression profiling analysis of Next-generation sequencing data for ARPE-19 cells cultured on soft or stiff polyacrylamide gels or standard tissue culture plastic.