ISIS Neutron and Muon Source Data Journal

Acoustic vibrational modulation of PEGMAL hydrogel properties

Abstract: In cell engineering, mechanotransduction has been widely used to induce cellular responses through various stimuli, such as vibrations. Although vibration has been widely studied for its effects on cells, little is known about how it impacts hydrogels used for 3D culture. A clearer understanding of how vibration impacts both cells and their environment will enable the design of a system that more accurately mimics human tissue microenvironments, such as the bone marrow. We aim to compare the scattering from primary assembled structures and any potential network changes to gels upon application of nanoscale vibration. SANS is preferred as it enables in-situ analysis of self-assembled structures, avoiding the need to dry samples for microscopy, which may alter aggregation and introduce drying artefacts. We wish to collect kinetic SANS data on hydrogels subjected to vibration, as well as how they relax once this vibration is removed. We will compare this data to samples vibrated offline, together with their corresponding relaxed samples. The results from this experiment will provide us with crucial information to further understand our gel systems to better tailor our hydrogels to mimic the bone marrow niche for use in predictive medicine.

Principal Investigator: Dr Rebecca Ginesi
Local Contact: Dr Diego Alba Venero
Experimenter: Dr Peter Childs
Experimenter: Dr Olivia Johnson-Love

DOI: 10.5286/ISIS.E.RB2610139

ISIS Experiment Number: RB2610139

Publisher: STFC ISIS Neutron and Muon Source

Data format: RAW/Nexus
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Data Citation

The recommended format for citing this dataset in a research publication is as:
[author], [date], [title], [publisher], [doi]

For Example:
Dr Rebecca Ginesi et al; (2026): Acoustic vibrational modulation of PEGMAL hydrogel properties , STFC ISIS Neutron and Muon Source, https://doi.org/10.5286/ISIS.E.RB2610139

Data is released under the CC-BY-4.0 license.