Usal, T. D., Bektas, C. K., Hasirci, N., and Hasirci, V. (2021). Engineered Biopolymers. In: Corinne Nardin, Helmut Schlaad (Eds.) Biological Soft Matter: Fundamentals, Properties, and Applications, 65-88, Weinheim, Germany: Wiley-VCH. DOI: 10.1002/9783527811014.ch3

Biopolymers are produced through biosynthesis by living organisms or via chemical synthesis from biological materials. They are extensively used in biomedical applications due to their biocompatibility and biodegradability. Biopolymers, however, have disadvantages such as low mechanical strength and excessive hydrophilicity. These polymers can be engineered to produce biopolymers with novel properties. Some of the tailor-made biopolymers are manufactured by interfering with the metabolic pathways of a microorganism. The tunable physical properties of engineered biopolymers make them perfect candidates for use in tissue engineering and regenerative medicine. They can be made to have proper mechanical and physicochemical properties and wettability required by living systems by adjusting their molecular structures with the help of advanced biotechnological techniques. Therefore, they have the advantage of having correct properties for the targeted applications. Engineered biopolymers can then be utilized in different areas such as biomaterials science and engineering, drug delivery systems, tissue models, and biosensors.

Kilic Bektas, C., Dursun Usal, T., Hasirci, N., and Hasirci, V. (2021). Engineered Hydrogels. In: Corinne Nardin, Helmut Schlaad (Eds.) Biological Soft Matter: Fundamentals, Properties, and Applications, 89-114, Weinheim, Germany: Wiley-VCH. DOI: 10.1002/9783527811014.ch4

Hydrogels are being employed in various biomedical applications such as drug delivery, tissue models, and tissue engineering due to their significant compatibility with natural tissue and especially with the extracellular matrix of the tissue microenvironment. Their high water content, tunable mechanical and biological properties, and availability from a wide range of synthetic and natural sources make them very promising materials in many fields. However, hydrogels obtained from natural resources and with traditional methods have their own few drawbacks such as low cell adhesion, limited injectability, and difficulty to control and/or change the design. Engineering hydrogels by the modification of their chemistry to incorporate self-healing capability and responsiveness toward environmental stimuli and their production by different biofabrication methods have proven to be very crucial in overcoming the inadequacies related with the conventional production techniques and broadened their appeal. The engineered hydrogels at present are attractive tools for use in many different areas including electronics, biosensors, biomedical engineering, and clinical applications.

Ermis, M., Sayin, E., Antmen, A., and Hasirci V. (2021). Mechanobiology. In: Corinne Nardin, Helmut Schlaad (Eds.) Biological Soft Matter: Fundamentals, Properties, and Applications, 229-270, Weinheim, Germany: Wiley-VCH. DOI: 10.1002/9783527811014.ch8

During the daily activities, living organisms sense, respond, and adapt to their physical and chemical environments at the molecular, cellular, tissue, organ, and organism levels. The extracellular matrix (ECM) is the support material of the cells, providing a microenvironment and playing an important role in cell metabolic activities and functions. Interactions of cells with the ECM and the neighboring cells trigger various responses that have essential roles in the regulation of the behavior and fate of the cells. Since the ECM has such a great importance for tissues, implant surfaces and scaffolds of tissue engineering, applications are designed to mimic the ECM. 3D scaffolds aim at creating an environment and functionality similar to that of the ECM. In order to be able to properly mimic the ECM of complex tissues, it is important to understand their functions, properties, and organization. Cells respond to environmental mechanical cues by initiating signaling events through mechanotransduction pathways that result in adaptations at both cytoskeletal architecture and gene expression levels. In this chapter, the ECM–cell and ECM–artificial substrate relations will be discussed in the context of mechanobiology.