Nerve strain correlates with structural changes quantified by Fourier analysis
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Updated: May 9, 2026

Measuring Local Tissue Strains in Tendons via Open-Source Digital Image Correlation
Published on: January 27, 2023
James M Love1, Ting-Hsien Chuang, Richard L Lieber
1Fischell Department of Bioengineering, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland, USA.
Introduction:
Nerve deformation affects physiological function. Bands of Fontana are an optical manifestation of axonal undulations and may provide a structural indicator of nerve strain.
Methods:
We developed an automated Fourier-based image processing method to quantify the periodicity of bands of Fontana both in bright field images and in axonal undulations in immunolabeled longitudinal sections.
Results:
We found a strong linear relationship between applied strain and the frequency of bands of Fontana in rat sciatic nerves (-0.0056 μm(-) ⋅%(-) , r2 = 0.829; P < 0.05). This relationship agreed with the observed trend between strain and axonal waviness, calculated from longitudinal sections of sciatic nerves immunolabeled against myelin basic protein.
Conclusions:
This accurate and objective approach has potential to increase our understanding of structure-function relationships in the nervous system and to guide preservation and enhancement of neural function.
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