Extracellular matrix composition is associated with tissue-specific decellularization susceptibility and mechanical remodeling across human urogenital tissues
- 1UMC Utrecht
Abstract
Decellularized extracellular matrices (ECMs) are widely used in regenerative medicine, yet current evaluation criteria prioritize cellular removal rather than preservation of the ECM characteristics that govern tissue behavior. Here, we demonstrate that efficient decellularization is achieved across a broad range of chemical conditions, whereas preservation of structurally and biologically relevant ECM components is confined to narrow, tissue-specific windows defined by coupled detergent interactions. Quantitative proteomics revealed that intrinsic ECM composition is strongly associated with tissue-specific susceptibility to decellularization-induced damage and provided molecular context for the distinct preservation responses between tissues. Optimized matrices retained major structural ECM components and supported tissue-specific cellular organization and cell-mediated mechanical reinforcement following cellular repopulation despite uniformly low residual DNA across protocols. Together, these findings support a shift in decellularization quality assessment from DNA-based evaluation toward preservation of biologically relevant ECM and establish a composition-driven strategy for the rational design of regenerative biomaterials with tissue-relevant biological and mechanical properties.
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BibTeX
@misc{bolduc2026extracellular,
title = {{Extracellular matrix composition is associated with tissue-specific decellularization susceptibility and mechanical remodeling across human urogenital tissues}},
author = {S. Bolduc and S. Chabaud and A. Droit and V. Fourcassie and F. Roux-Dalvai and Y. Sahuc and J. J. Sueters},
howpublished = {bioRxiv},
year = {2026},
month = aug,
doi = {10.64898/2026.08.28.747607},
url = {https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.08.28.747607v1},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - Extracellular matrix composition is associated with tissue-specific decellularization susceptibility and mechanical remodeling across human urogenital tissues
AU - S. Bolduc
AU - S. Chabaud
AU - A. Droit
AU - V. Fourcassie
AU - F. Roux-Dalvai
AU - Y. Sahuc
AU - J. J. Sueters
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/08/28
PB - bioRxiv
DO - 10.64898/2026.08.28.747607
UR - https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.08.28.747607v1
AB - Decellularized extracellular matrices (ECMs) are widely used in regenerative medicine, yet current evaluation criteria prioritize cellular removal rather than preservation of the ECM characteristics that govern tissue behavior. Here, we demonstrate that efficient decellularization is achieved across a broad range of chemical conditions, whereas preservation of structurally and biologically relevant ECM components is confined to narrow, tissue-specific windows defined by coupled detergent interactions. Quantitative proteomics revealed that intrinsic ECM composition is strongly associated with tissue-specific susceptibility to decellularization-induced damage and provided molecular context for the distinct preservation responses between tissues. Optimized matrices retained major structural ECM components and supported tissue-specific cellular organization and cell-mediated mechanical reinforcement following cellular repopulation despite uniformly low residual DNA across protocols. Together, these findings support a shift in decellularization quality assessment from DNA-based evaluation toward preservation of biologically relevant ECM and establish a composition-driven strategy for the rational design of regenerative biomaterials with tissue-relevant biological and mechanical properties.
ER -