Objective      To determine the effect of self-assembling peptide hydrogel TRSAWmx on cell adhesion

proliferation and osteogenic differentiation of mouse pre-osteoblasts MC3T3-E1 in vitro.       Methods      The nanostructure charateristics of TRSAWmx hydrogel were observed with an atomic force microscope (AFM). The adhesion of MC3T3-E1 cells to different hydrogels was measured by counting adherent cells under an inverted microscope. The proliferation was investigated by cell counting kit (CCK)-8 assay. A laser confocal microscope was employed to observe the cell morphology. Alizarin red staining was used to observe calcium nodules. Alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity as well as the expressions of ALP

osteocalcin (OCN) and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) was detected to evaluate osteogenic differentiation of MC3T3-E1 cells.       Results      TRSAWmx hydrogel showed nanofiber structure based on self-assembly. The cell adhesion assay showed that TRSAWmx hydrogel had better cell adhesion (P0.05) than the control. CCK-8 assay showed that the proliferative activity of MC3T3-E1 cells on the TRSAWmx hydrogel was higher than that on the traditional RADA16-Ⅰ gel on day 3

day 5 and day 7 (P0.05). The activity of ALP was higher in the TRSAWmx hydrogel than in the RADA16-Ⅰ gel on day 3

day 7 and day 14 (P0.05). Calcium nodules were observed in the TRSAWmx hydrogel on day 14 after osteogenic induction

while the expressions of ALP

OCN and VEGF in the MC3T3-E1 cells were enhanced on day 14 (P0.05).       Conclusion      The functionalized self-assembling peptide hydrogel TRSAWmx can enhance the adhesion

proliferation and osteogenic differentiation of MC3T3-E1 cells in vitro.