| Obesity is a rising issue, especially in the United States, that can lead to heart problems, type II diabetes, and respiratory problems. Since the 1970s, obesity rates in the United States have more than doubled in adults and children. Recent evidence suggests that exposure to certain chemicals, termed "obesogens", in utero may alter metabolic processes, predisposing individuals to gain weight. The goal of this thesis is to develop a three-dimensional platform that is able to model the effects of obesogens in vitro. Human embryonic-derived stem cells in three-dimensional collagen embedded silk scaffolds were exposed to three different obesogens. The exposed models had an increase in accumulation of triglycerides and expression of adipogenic genes (PLIN1, PPARy, and FABP4) compared to equivalent cultures with no obesogen exposures. These results demonstrate that we were able to successfully develop a representative model of in utero obesogen exposure. |
