New structural concepts of articular cartilage demonstrated with a physical model

The construction and function of a model of articular cartilage based on a system of deformable elements trapped within a three-dimensional network of fibrils is described. The network is generated from a radial array of elements appropriately crosslinked along their length. The model demonstrates in a qualitative sense how a soft composite tissue structure such as articular cartilage developed from a specific arrangement of two primary components exhibiting totally contrasting mechanical properties, i.e. tension resisting collagen fibrils and highly deformable hydrated proteoglycans, can have dimensional stability in its unloaded state and mechanical resilience under a wide range of loading conditions.