Mechanotransduction in cortical bone and the role of piezoelectricity: a numerical approach

This paper is a contribution to a plausible explanation of the mechanotransduction phenomenon in cortical bone during its remodelling. Our contribution deals only with the mechanical processes and the biological aspects have not been taken into account. It is well known that osteoblasts are able to generate bone in a suitable bony substitute only under fluid action. But the bone created in this manner is not organised to resist specific mechanical stress. Our aim was to suggest the nature of the physical information that can be transmitted - directly or via a biological or biochemical process - to the cell to initiate a cellular activity inducing the reconstruction of the osteon that is best adapted to local mechanical stresses. For this, the cell must have, from our point of view, a good knowledge of its structural environment. But this knowledge exists at the cellular scale while the bone is loaded at the macroscopic scale. This study is based on the SiNuPrOs model that allows exchange of information between the different structural scales of cortical bone. It shows that more than the fluid, the collagen - via its piezoelectric properties - plays an essential role in the transmission of information between the macroscopic and nanoscopic scales. Moreover, this process allows us to explain various dysfunctions and even some diseases.