Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 21, 2026

Measuring Deformability and Red Cell Heterogeneity in Blood by Ektacytometry
Published on: January 12, 2018
The deformation behavior of multiple red blood cells in a capillary vessel
Xiaobo Gong1, Kazuyasu Sugiyama, Shu Takagi
1Organ and Body Scale Team, Computational Science Research Program, RIKEN, 2-1, Hirosawa, Wako, Saitama 351-0198, Japan. gong@riken.jp
Abstract:
The deformation of multiple red blood cells in a capillary flow was studied numerically. The immersed boundary method was used for the fluid red blood cells interaction. The membrane of the red blood cell was modeled as a hyperelastic thin shell. The numerical results show that the apparent viscosity in the capillary flow is more sensitive to the change of shear coefficient of the membrane than the bending coefficient and surface dilation coefficient, and the increase in the shear coefficient results in an increase in the pressure drop in the blood flow in capillary vessels in order to sustain the same flux rate of red blood cells.
Related Concept Videos
Deformation of Member under Multiple Loadings
In the case of a member with a variable cross-section, the strain is not constant but depends on the position. The deformation of an...
Autoregulation of Blood Flow
Chemical Signaling in Autoregulation
Chemical signaling operates at the precapillary sphincter level, inciting either contraction or relaxation.
Capillaries and Their Types
Structure of Blood Vessels
Capillary Beds
Capillaries connect arterioles, small branches of arteries, to venules,...
Blood Flow

