Assessing Raw 264.7 migration in a mechanically-tunable 3D collagen-hyaluronic acid co-gel for use in Borrelia Burgdorferi pathology study

Abstract

Borrelia Burgdorferi, the bacteria associated with Lyme Disease, has been a topic of much research in recent decades, but it continues to prove difficult to understand how the bacteria interacts with the immune system on a cellular level, specifically macrophages. To aid in this work, a 3D hydrogel for cell culture was formulated using collagen and hyaluronic acid (HA) to help provide a system for studying these dynamic cellular responses in a soft-tissue environment. A design of experiments was organized to study the effects of collagen concentration, HA fragment size, and Collagen:HA mass ratio on both the hydrogel properties and macrophage mobility and growth. Mechanical characterization of the gels was conducted using rheology and found that collagen concentration, but not HA content, directly modulated the hydrogel storage modulus. The hydrogels were shown to be suitable for cell culture, allowing for cellular proliferation, but exhibited limited chemotaxis.