Tissue-engineered Collagenous Fibrous Cap Models to Systematically Elucidate Atherosclerotic Plaque Rupture. | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Tissue-engineered Collagenous Fibrous Cap Models to Systematically Elucidate Atherosclerotic Plaque Rupture. T.B. Wissing, K. Van der Heiden, S.M. Serra, A.I.P.M. Smits, C.V.C. Bouten, and 1 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-780191/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Published Journal Publication published 31 Mar, 2022 Read the published version in Scientific Reports → Version 1 posted 11 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract A significant amount of vascular thrombotic events is associated with rupture of the fibrous cap that overlie atherosclerotic plaques. Cap rupture is however difficult to predict due to the heterogenous composition of the plaque, unknown material properties, and the stochastic nature of the event. Here, we aim to create tissue engineered human fibrous cap models with a variable but controllable collagen composition, suitable for mechanical testing, to scrutinize the reciprocal relationships between composition and mechanical properties. Myofibroblasts were cultured in 1 x 1.5 cm-sized fibrin-based constrained gels for 21 days according to established (dynamic) culture protocols (i.e. static, intermittent or continuous loading) to vary collagen composition (e.g. amount, type and organization). At day 7, a soft 2 mm ∅ fibrin inclusion was introduced in the centre of each tissue to mimic the soft lipid core, simulating the heterogeneity of a plaque. Results demonstrate reproducible collagenous tissues, that mimic the bulk mechanical properties of human caps and vary in collagen composition due to the presence of an successfully integrated soft inclusion and the culture protocol applied. The models can be deployed to assess tissue mechanics, evolution and failure of fibrous caps or complex heterogeneous tissues in general. Biomedical Engineering vascular thrombotic events Tissue-engineered collagenous fibrous cap models atherosclerotic plaque rupture Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Supplementary Files Wissingetal2021SupplementaryInformation.pdf Cite Share Download PDF Status: Published Journal Publication published 31 Mar, 2022 Read the published version in Scientific Reports → Version 1 posted Editorial decision: Major revision 25 Jan, 2022 Reviews received at journal 24 Jan, 2022 Reviewers agreed at journal 23 Dec, 2021 Reviews received at journal 16 Dec, 2021 Reviewers agreed at journal 24 Nov, 2021 Reviewers agreed at journal 23 Nov, 2021 Reviewers invited by journal 17 Nov, 2021 Editor assigned by journal 17 Nov, 2021 Editor invited by journal 10 Aug, 2021 Submission checks completed at journal 10 Aug, 2021 First submitted to journal 04 Aug, 2021 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-780191","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":44940192,"identity":"06c54863-ad37-47d0-bdc2-41e46f3b6960","order_by":0,"name":"T.B. 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