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Cellular Microbiaxial Stretching to Measure a Single-Cell Strain Energy Density Function
Zaw Win1, Justin M Buksa1, Kerianne E Steucke1
1Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, 312 Church Street SE NHH 7-105, Minneapolis, MN 55455
Journal of Biomechanical Engineering
|April 12, 2017
Summary
Cellular mechanical properties are anisotropic, influencing cell responses to stimuli. A new microbiaxial stretching method reveals vascular smooth muscle cells
Area of Science:
- Cellular Biomechanics
- Biomaterials Science
- Tissue Engineering
Background:
- Cellular mechanical properties determine stress response to extracellular stimuli.
- Anisotropic cellular structure influences mechanotransduction and tissue biomechanics models.
- Standard methods fail to capture large-deformation anisotropic properties.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop and validate a cellular microbiaxial stretching (CμBS) method for measuring anisotropic cellular mechanics.
- To investigate the anisotropic elastic behavior of individual vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs).
- To characterize a strain energy density function (SED) for VSMCs based on their actin cytoskeleton organization.
Main Methods:
- Development of a cellular microbiaxial stretching (CμBS) technique.
- Application of CμBS to measure anisotropic elastic behavior of individual VSMCs.
- Characterization of a Holzapfel-Gasser-Ogden type strain energy density function (SED).
Main Results:
- VSMCs exhibit significant anisotropy under large deformations.
- A SED formulation based on actin cytoskeleton organization accurately describes VSMC properties.
- Cellular architecture-dependent properties are robustly captured by the developed SED.
Conclusions:
- Cellular anisotropy is a critical factor in biomechanical modeling.
- The CμBS method provides robust characterization of anisotropic cellular mechanics.
- Actin cytoskeleton organization is key to understanding VSMC anisotropic behavior and mechano-adaptation.