{"id":{"repo_id":"uiuc","oai_identifier":"oai:www.ideals.illinois.edu:2142/115872"},"canonical_url":"https://search.dev.ndltd.org/etd/uiuc/oai:www.ideals.illinois.edu:2142/115872","repository":{"repo_id":"uiuc","name":"University of Illinois - Urbana-Champaign","base_url":"https://www.ideals.illinois.edu/oai-pmh"},"display":{"title":"Biomaterial-based models of the endometrium and trophoblast invasion to investigate early pregnancy","abstract":"Submission published under a 24 month embargo labeled 'Closed Access', the embargo will last until 2024-08-01","abstract_html":"Submission published under a 24 month embargo labeled 'Closed Access', the embargo will last until 2024-08-01","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Zambuto, Samantha G."],"institution":"University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign","degree_name":"Ph.D.","degree_level":"Dissertation","degree_discipline":"Bioengineering","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Harley, Brendan AC","Clancy, Kathryn BH","Underhill, Gregory H","Nowak, Romana A"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2022,"date_issued":"2022-08","date_published":"2022-08","updated_at":"2026-07-22T22:24:55Z","subjects":["tissue engineering","biomaterials","women's health","female reproductive health","pregnancy","trophoblast","invasion' angiogenesis","hydrogels","gelatin"],"languages":["en","eng"],"rights":["Copyright 2022 Samantha Zambuto"],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://hdl.handle.net/2142/115872","outbound_label":"Handle","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Harley, Brendan AC","Clancy, Kathryn BH","Underhill, Gregory H","Nowak, Romana A"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Zambuto, Samantha G."]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date","label":"Dc Date","values":["2022-08","2022-06-29"]},{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["text","Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Bioengineering"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Dissertation"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["Ph.D."]},{"key":"thesis:institution_name","label":"Thesis Institution Name","values":["University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["tissue engineering","biomaterials","women's health","female reproductive health","pregnancy","trophoblast","invasion' angiogenesis","hydrogels","gelatin"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:language","label":"Dc Language","values":["en","eng"]},{"key":"dc:rights","label":"Dc Rights","values":["Copyright 2022 Samantha Zambuto"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://hdl.handle.net/2142/115872"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description","label":"Description","values":["Submission published under a 24 month embargo labeled 'Closed Access', the embargo will last until 2024-08-01","The student, Samantha Zambuto, accepted the attached license on 2022-06-20 at 18:02.","The student, Samantha Zambuto, submitted this Dissertation for approval on 2022-06-20 at 18:11.","This Dissertation was approved for publication on 2022-06-29 at 15:27.","DSpace SAF Submission Ingestion Package generated from Vireo submission #18086 on 2022-11-16 at 10:17:16","Pregnancy is established once an invading blastocyst successfully implants into the lining of the uterus known as the endometrium. Cellular crosstalk between endometrial cells and trophoblast cells from the blastocyst coordinate the extent of invasion into the endometrium and defects in this crosstalk can lead to a spectrum of pregnancy conditions; however, implantation occurs 6-12 days into pregnancy which provides a difficult challenge to studying this process in humans. Initial blastocyst implantation into the endometrium has never been observed in humans and what we currently know is inferred from rare histological specimens. With complex, three-dimensional in vitro model systems, we have the unique opportunity to develop platforms to study this process in systems that replicate the in vivo tissue microenvironment. We demonstrated that methacrylamide-functionalized gelatin (GelMA) hydrogels are adaptable for studying dynamic endometrial processes, including vascular formation, hormone responsiveness, epithelial monolayer formation, and trophoblast invasion. We create and characterize a library of GelMA hydrogels with mechanical properties similar to the native endometrium and placenta, support the culture of an endometrial perivascular niche to study endometrial angiogenesis, provide biochemical cues to hormone-responsive cells (e.g., decidualization of endometrial stromal cells), establish epithelial monolayers overlaying GelMA hydrogels and have employed the GelMA platform for trophoblast invasion assays. These tools allow us to answer the following questions: How does cortisol influence endometrial function? How do biomolecular signals from stress influence trophoblast invasion?"]},{"key":"dc:format","label":"Dc Format","values":["application/pdf"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Biomaterial-based models of the endometrium and trophoblast invasion to investigate early pregnancy"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Harley, Brendan AC","Clancy, Kathryn BH","Underhill, Gregory H","Nowak, Romana A"],"dc:creator":["Zambuto, Samantha G."],"dc:date":["2022-08","2022-06-29"],"dc:description":["Submission published under a 24 month embargo labeled 'Closed Access', the embargo will last until 2024-08-01","The student, Samantha Zambuto, accepted the attached license on 2022-06-20 at 18:02.","The student, Samantha Zambuto, submitted this Dissertation for approval on 2022-06-20 at 18:11.","This Dissertation was approved for publication on 2022-06-29 at 15:27.","DSpace SAF Submission Ingestion Package generated from Vireo submission #18086 on 2022-11-16 at 10:17:16","Pregnancy is established once an invading blastocyst successfully implants into the lining of the uterus known as the endometrium. Cellular crosstalk between endometrial cells and trophoblast cells from the blastocyst coordinate the extent of invasion into the endometrium and defects in this crosstalk can lead to a spectrum of pregnancy conditions; however, implantation occurs 6-12 days into pregnancy which provides a difficult challenge to studying this process in humans. Initial blastocyst implantation into the endometrium has never been observed in humans and what we currently know is inferred from rare histological specimens. With complex, three-dimensional in vitro model systems, we have the unique opportunity to develop platforms to study this process in systems that replicate the in vivo tissue microenvironment. We demonstrated that methacrylamide-functionalized gelatin (GelMA) hydrogels are adaptable for studying dynamic endometrial processes, including vascular formation, hormone responsiveness, epithelial monolayer formation, and trophoblast invasion. We create and characterize a library of GelMA hydrogels with mechanical properties similar to the native endometrium and placenta, support the culture of an endometrial perivascular niche to study endometrial angiogenesis, provide biochemical cues to hormone-responsive cells (e.g., decidualization of endometrial stromal cells), establish epithelial monolayers overlaying GelMA hydrogels and have employed the GelMA platform for trophoblast invasion assays. These tools allow us to answer the following questions: How does cortisol influence endometrial function? How do biomolecular signals from stress influence trophoblast invasion?"],"dc:format":["application/pdf"],"dc:identifier":["https://hdl.handle.net/2142/115872"],"dc:language":["en","eng"],"dc:rights":["Copyright 2022 Samantha Zambuto"],"dc:subject":["tissue engineering","biomaterials","women's health","female reproductive health","pregnancy","trophoblast","invasion' angiogenesis","hydrogels","gelatin"],"dc:title":["Biomaterial-based models of the endometrium and trophoblast invasion to investigate early pregnancy"],"dc:type":["text","Thesis"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Bioengineering"],"thesis:degree_level":["Dissertation"],"thesis:degree_name":["Ph.D."],"thesis:institution_name":["University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-22T22:24:55Z"}