Synthetic Hydrogels with Entangled Neutrophil Extracellular Traps Influence Tumor Progression in MDA-MB-231 Cells

ABSTRACT We incorporated neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) in a poly(ethylene glycol)-based synthetic extracellular matrix to study their impact on tumorigenesis in triple negative breast carcinoma (TNBC) cells in a highly controlled environment. We observed that NETs helped to increase cell survival, proliferation, and pro-metastatic morphological phenotype. We also showed that the presence of NETs influenced the secretion of IL-8, a pro-NETosis factor, and that conditioned media from cells cultured in these gels influenced NETosis in an IL-8 dependent manner. The results observed in this system correlate with murine models and clinical studies in the literature and help to provide additional insight of the individual factors at play in the NET-mediated promotion of TNBC progression and metastasis.