Human pluripotent
stem cell (hPSC)-derived endothelial cells (ECs)
are promising cell sources for drug discovery, tissue engineering,
and studying or treating vascular diseases. However, hPSC-ECs derived
from different culture methods display different phenotypes. Herein,
we made a detailed comparative study of hPSC-ECs from three different
culture systems (e.g., 2D, 3D PNIPAAm-PEG hydrogel, and 3D alginate
hydrogel cultures) based on our previous reports. We expanded hPSCs
and differentiated them into ECs in three culture systems. Both 3D
hydrogel systems could mimic an
in vivo
physiologically
relevant microenvironment to protect cells from shear force and prevent
cell agglomeration, leading to a high culture efficiency and a high
volumetric yield. We demonstrated that hPSC-ECs produced from both
hydrogel systems had similar results as 2D-ECs. The transcriptome
analysis showed that PEG-ECs and alginate-ECs displayed a functional
phenotype due to their higher gene expressions in vasculature development,
extracellular matrix, angiogenesis, and glycolysis, while 2D-ECs showed
a proliferative phenotype due to their higher gene expressions in
cell proliferation. Taken together, both PEG- and alginate-hydrogel
systems will significantly advance the applications of hPSC-ECs in
various biomedical fields.