# Multiscale structural and functional biomechanics of contracting platelet-fibrin based biomaterials and blood clots in oral microenvironment

> **NIH NIH R21** · UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA · 2022 · $54,040

## Abstract

Project Summary
 Platelet-rich plasma clots are a unique biomaterial used for oral and dental surgical procedures to
promote wound healing and tissue regeneration in the oral cavity. While aspects of platelet biochemical
regenerative potential have been previously studied, the biomechanical function of platelets resulting in
contraction of fibrin matrix and blood clots at injury sites in the oral environment has not been addressed. Blood
clot contraction is a result of the biomechanical interactions between activated platelets and polymerized fibrin,
the two major components of hemostatic clots at oral injury sites, other than red blood cells and fewer leukocytes.
The biomedical importance of clot contraction in vivo is evident from promoting wound healing around teeth and
implants by approximating the edges of the wound and formation of impermeable physical barriers against
bacterial invasion and toxin propagation in oral wounds. Despite the importance of the platelet contractile function
for remodeling of blood clots at oral injury sites and clots comprising platelet-rich fibrin surgical hemostatic
sealants, the relation between clot contraction dynamics and metabolic and structural changes in activated
platelets in oral wounds remains largely unknown. Thus, the main objective of the proposed research is to
discover multiscale and time-dependent biomechanical and structural mechanisms of platelet-induced clot
contraction in the oral microenvironment and its functional consequences, including modulations of clot
mechanical properties and stability. We will focus on the following Aims: Aim 1. Determine structural
mechanisms of platelet-induced clot contraction studied at the cellular and subcellular levels. Aim 2. Define the
impact of salivary extracellular vesicles on structural properties and viscoelasticity of contracting platelet-rich
plasma clots. Aim 3. Identify late-stage structural, metabolic, and functional consequences of platelet activation
and contraction in the oral microenvironment. To reach our goals, we will apply state-of-the-art biophysical and
biochemical methods with quantitative characterization and structural details from the molecular and cellular
levels up to the scale of the entire clot. By applying a combination of different techniques, including high-
resolution light microscopy, rheometry, and biochemical assays, our project will bridge the gap between different
spatial scales and will establish relations between the molecular, single-cell and single-fiber levels to global
structural and mechanical modulations of the entire blood clot. The proposed study will establish a mechanistic
basis for platelet-driven clot contraction in the presence of salivary extracellular vesicles, which will yield insights
into the structure and function of activated platelets as well as variations of viscoelastic properties and
architecture of platelet-fibrin scaffolds at oral injury sites. The acquired knowledge will improve our understan...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10492050
- **Project number:** 5R21DE030294-02
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA
- **Principal Investigator:** Oleg Kim
- **Activity code:** R21 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $54,040
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2021-09-21 → 2023-01-09

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10492050

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10492050, Multiscale structural and functional biomechanics of contracting platelet-fibrin based biomaterials and blood clots in oral microenvironment (5R21DE030294-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-25 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10492050. Licensed CC0.

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