Combined effects of shear stress and extracellular matrices on vascular differentiation of mouse embryonic stem cells

Sufficient vascularization of tissue is critical in regenerative medicine and tissue engineering. Embryonic stem cells (ESCs) can act as an unlimited resource in providing vascular tissue given their ability to self-renew and differentiate into any cell type. However, controlled vascular differentiation remains a challenge due to an intricate, coordinated interaction of multiple factors. Soluble factors, extracellular matrices, cell-cell interactions, and hemodynamic forces all contribute to vascular development. We propose to investigate how mouse ESCs respond to the combined stimuli of fluidic shear stress and various extracellular matrices, especially in terms of arterial or venous specification.