Biomechanics and Modeling in Mechanobiology最新文献

{"title":"Role of player-specific white matter parcellation and scaling in impact-induced strain responses.","authors":"Véronique Bouvette, Samuel Guay, Louis De Beaumont, Yvan Petit, Sophie-Andrée Vinet, Eric Wagnac","doi":"10.1007/s10237-025-01945-8","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10237-025-01945-8","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Head finite element models (hFEMs) are valuable in understanding injury mechanisms in head impacts. Personalizing hFEMs is important for capturing individualized brain responses, with brain volume scaling proving effective. However, the role of refined white matter (WM) parcellation in hFEMs for evaluating brain strain responses, particularly important in the context of subconcussive head impacts (SHIs) often assessed through changes in WM integrity, remains relatively underexplored. This study evaluated the effect of refined subject-specific WM parcellation in 34 WM segments on responses variability due to brain volume variations, using peak maximum principal strain (95MPS) and strain rate (95MPSr) as injury predictive metrics. Data from diffusion-weighted imaging of 21 Canadian varsity football players were utilized to personalize 21 hFEMs. Simulating four different head impacts, representing 50th and 99th percentile resultant accelerations in frontal and angled-top-right directions, refined player-specific WM parcellation better captured variability of strain responses compared to baseline parcellation. Up to 75.71% of 95MPS and 77.14% of 95MPSr responses were deemed different across refined WM segments for players, compared to a maximum of 16.19% of responses with baseline parcellation. These results suggest that player-specific refined WM parcellation improves the ability to capture player-specific responses. Both impact direction and intensity influenced variations in strain response, with angled-top head impacts combined with high intensity showing greater player-specificity compared to lower intensity and frontal head impacts. These findings highlight the potential benefit of model scaling along with player-specific refined WM parcellation in hFEMs for comprehensively evaluating strain responses. Detailed WM parcellation in hFEMs is important for comprehensive injury assessment, enhancing the alignment of hFEMs with imaging studies evaluating changes in WM integrity across segments. The simple and straightforward method presented herein to achieve player-specific strain response is promising for future SHI studies.</p>","PeriodicalId":489,"journal":{"name":"Biomechanics and Modeling in Mechanobiology","volume":" ","pages":"939-961"},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2025-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143770830","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Regional differences in biomechanical properties of the ascending aorta in aneurysmal and normal aortas.","authors":"Sachin Peterson, Daniella Eliathamby, Hayley Yap, Malak Elbatarny, Vrushali Guruji, Rifat Islam, Maral Ouzounian, Craig A Simmons, Jennifer Chung","doi":"10.1007/s10237-025-01941-y","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10237-025-01941-y","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objective: </strong>To understand regional biomechanical differences within the healthy and aneurysmal ascending aorta.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>Aortic tissue was collected from the inner (IC) and outer (OC) curvature of aneurysms excised during elective surgery (n = 102) and normal aortas from organ donors (n = 25). Biaxial tensile testing and peel testing were performed to derive a comprehensive set of biomechanical parameters.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>In normal aortas, the OC exhibited greater energy loss, lower tangent modulus at low strain, and lower transition zone stress compared to the IC. In aneurysmal aortas, similar findings were observed. All IC and OC biomechanical parameters were linearly correlated in aneurysmal aortas, including delamination strength. Healthy and aneurysmal aortas exhibited similar degrees of difference between IC and OC for most biomechanical properties. Aneurysms with greater biomechanical differences between IC and OC trended toward being older (p = 0.096) with larger diameters (p = 0.051) compared to other aneurysms. Asymmetric bulging exhibited lower stiffness and transition zone stress in the OC, but no difference in delamination strength between regions.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>Regional biomechanical differences exist in aneurysms of the ascending aorta to a similar extent as in healthy aortas. In aneurysms, biomechanical properties of the IC and OC regions were strongly linearly correlated, suggesting that the regional differences in ascending aortic biomechanics are less important than the large biomechanical variability that exists between patients.</p>","PeriodicalId":489,"journal":{"name":"Biomechanics and Modeling in Mechanobiology","volume":" ","pages":"865-877"},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2025-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143956334","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Biomechanical profiling of in vitro blood clots: sensitivity to sex, age, and blood composition in a healthy adult population.","authors":"Grace N Bechtel, Gabriella P Sugerman, Tatum Eades, Layla Parast, Hamidreza Saber, Alicia Chang, Adam M Bush, Manuel K Rausch","doi":"10.1007/s10237-025-01954-7","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10237-025-01954-7","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Blood clots' mechanical properties are important in both their physiological role and in the initiation and progression of thromboembolic diseases. Because studying blood clot properties in vivo is difficult, many prior studies have investigated the properties of in vitro clots instead. However, much remains to be understood about in vitro clots, especially those derived from human blood. For example, the association between subject-specific factors and clot mechanical properties is currently unknown. Our objective is to fill this knowledge gap and study the sensitivity of in vitro blood clots to subject-specific factors, including sex, age, and blood composition. We drew blood from healthy adults aged 19-46, coagulated clots into mechanical test specimens, and characterized their properties. Specifically, we quantified clot stiffness, fracture toughness, contractility, and hysteresis. We then quantified the relative dependence of those properties on subject-specific factors, including sex, age, and blood composition. We found that there is significant variation in clot properties within healthy subjects. Clots from female subjects' blood are stiffer, more resistant to fracture, and show more hysteresis compared to clots from male subjects. However, we found no association between clot properties and age and only a weak association with clot composition, e.g., hematocrit. Finally, even together, sex, age, and blood composition only moderately explain the observed variability in clot mechanical properties. Our work therefore suggests that in vitro clots may capture relevant information not reflected in standard clinical data. Future studies should investigate in vitro clots' potential as biomarkers for thrombotic risk and treatment response.</p>","PeriodicalId":489,"journal":{"name":"Biomechanics and Modeling in Mechanobiology","volume":" ","pages":"1073-1083"},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2025-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143955089","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"A computational and experimental study of veno-arterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation in cardiogenic shock: defining the trade-off between perfusion and afterload.","authors":"Emanuele Gasparotti, Emanuele Vignali, Massimo Scolaro, Dorela Haxhiademi, Simona Celi","doi":"10.1007/s10237-025-01952-9","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10237-025-01952-9","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Veno-Arterial Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (VA-ECMO) is a type of mechanical circulatory support used, among others, in case of cardiogenic shock, consisting in percutaneous cannulation of the femoral artery. Despite the widespread use of this procedure in clinical practice, a deeper understanding of the complex interaction between native and ECMO output, as well as the fluid dynamics and perfusion of aorta and its branches is still required. Herein, a numerical and experimental approach is presented to model a VA-ECMO procedure on a patient-specific aortic geometry. For both approaches, cardiogenic shock was modeled by considering three different severities of left ventricular failure (mild, moderate, and severe), corresponding to a reduction in cardiac output of 30%, 50%, and 70% relative to the healthy condition, respectively. For each case, different levels of the ECMO support were simulated, ranging from 0 to 6 l/min. The performance of the VA-ECMO configuration was evaluated in terms of both afterload increase and flow at all aortic branches. Both methods highlighted the afterload increase in high levels of ECMO support. Furthermore, numerical and experimental data revealed the existence of a trade-off level of ECMO support that guarantees healthy perfusion of all vessels with the lowest afterload. This correlation opened a pathway for the definition of a tool for determining a suitable level of ECMO support on the basis of the knowledge of patient-specific data.</p>","PeriodicalId":489,"journal":{"name":"Biomechanics and Modeling in Mechanobiology","volume":" ","pages":"1043-1056"},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2025-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143957504","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"A computational framework for quantifying blood flow dynamics across myogenically-active cerebral arterial networks.","authors":"Alberto Coccarelli, Ioannis Polydoros, Alex Drysdale, Osama F Harraz, Chennakesava Kadapa","doi":"10.1007/s10237-025-01958-3","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10237-025-01958-3","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Cerebral autoregulation plays a key physiological role by limiting blood flow changes in the face of pressure fluctuations. Although the underlying vascular cellular processes are chemo-mechanically driven, estimating the associated haemodynamic forces in vivo remains extremely difficult and uncertain. In this work, we propose a novel computational methodology for evaluating the blood flow dynamics across networks of myogenically-active cerebral arteries, which can modulate their muscular tone to stabilize flow (and perfusion pressure) as well as to limit vascular intramural stress. The introduced framework integrates a continuum mechanics-based, biologically-motivated model of the rat vascular wall with 1D blood flow dynamics. We investigate the time dependency of the vascular wall response to pressure changes at both single vessel and network levels. The dynamical performance of the vessel wall mechanics model was validated against different pressure protocols and conditions (control and absence of extracellular <math><msup><mtext>Ca</mtext> <mrow><mn>2</mn> <mo>+</mo></mrow> </msup> </math> ). The robustness of the integrated fluid-structure interaction framework was assessed using different types of inlet signals and numerical settings in an idealized vascular network formed by a middle cerebral artery and its three generations. The proposed in-silico methodology aims to quantify how acute changes in upstream luminal pressure propagate and influence blood flow across a network of rat cerebral arteries. Weak coupling ensured accurate results with a lower computational cost for the vessel size and boundary conditions considered. To complete the analysis, we evaluated the effect of an upstream pressure surge on vascular network haemodynamics in the presence and absence of myogenic tone. This provided a clear quantitative picture of how pressure, flow and vascular constriction are re-distributed across each vessel generation upon inlet pressure changes. This work paves the way for future combined experimental-computational studies aiming to decipher cerebral autoregulation.</p>","PeriodicalId":489,"journal":{"name":"Biomechanics and Modeling in Mechanobiology","volume":" ","pages":"1123-1140"},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2025-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12162246/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143958956","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Tuning the trabecular orientation of Voronoi-based scaffold to optimize the micro-environment for bone healing.","authors":"Luca D'Andrea, Giorgio Goretti, Gianni Magrini, Pasquale Vena","doi":"10.1007/s10237-025-01953-8","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10237-025-01953-8","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Voronoi tessellation is a powerful technique for designing random structures for bone tissue engineering applications. In this study, an innovative algorithm for scaffold design that controls trabecular orientation while maintaining an overall random architecture is presented. Morphological analyses and numerical models were employed to comprehensively characterize the scaffolds. The results indicate that the effective stiffness and permeability of the scaffolds are directly influenced by the trabecular orientation. In contrast, other parameters, such as porosity, trabecular thickness, trabecular spacing, and curvatures, can be kept constant with respect to the trabecular orientation. These findings, in conjunction with mechano-biological considerations, provide a robust design workflow to optimize the micro-environment for bone growth. This framework offers a valuable tool for selecting the most suitable scaffold architecture according to the specific external loads, thereby enhancing the efficacy and reliability of bone scaffolds in clinical applications. Through this approach, the aim is to improve the precision and outcomes of bone tissue engineering, contributing to the development of advanced therapeutic solutions for bone repair and regeneration.</p>","PeriodicalId":489,"journal":{"name":"Biomechanics and Modeling in Mechanobiology","volume":" ","pages":"1057-1071"},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2025-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12162728/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143961625","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"A quantitative review of finite element-based biomechanics of lumbar decompression surgery.","authors":"Mary H Foltz, Alexandra H Seidenstein, Craig Almeida, Andrew Kim, Amit Jain, Jill M Middendorf","doi":"10.1007/s10237-025-01936-9","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10237-025-01936-9","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Lumbar decompression surgeries are commonly performed in the USA to treat pain from spinal stenosis, often with little to no biomechanical evidence to evaluate the risks and benefits of a given surgery. Finite element models of lumbar spinal decompression surgeries attempt to elucidate the biomechanical benefits and risks of these procedures. Each published finite element model uses a unique subset of lumbar decompression surgeries, a unique human lumbar spine, and unique model inputs. Thus, drawing conclusions about biomechanical changes and biomechanical complications due to surgical variations is difficult. This quantitative review performed an analysis on the stresses, forces, and range of motion reported in lumbar spine finite element models that focus on spinal decompression surgeries. To accomplish this analysis, data from finite elements models of lumbar decompression surgeries published between 2000 and December 2023 were normalized to the intact spine and compared. This analysis indicated that increased bony resection and increased ligament resection are associated with increased pathologic range of motion compared to limited resection techniques. Further, a few individual studies show an increase in important outcomes such IVD stresses, pars interarticularis stresses, and facet joint forces due to decompression surgery, but the small number of published models with these results limits the generalizability of these findings to the general population. Future FE models should report these spinal stresses and incorporate patient-specific anatomical features such as IVD health, facet geometry, stenosis patient vertebrae, and vertebral porosity into the model.</p>","PeriodicalId":489,"journal":{"name":"Biomechanics and Modeling in Mechanobiology","volume":" ","pages":"743-759"},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2025-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144109342","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Comparing the predictions of CT-based subject-specific finite element models of human metastatic vertebrae with digital volume correlation measurements.","authors":"Chiara Garavelli, Alessandra Aldieri, Marco Palanca, Enrico Dall'Ara, Marco Viceconti","doi":"10.1007/s10237-025-01950-x","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10237-025-01950-x","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Several conditions can increase the incidence of vertebral fragility fractures, including metastatic bone disease. Computational tools could help clinicians estimate the risk of vertebral fracture in these patients; however, comparison with in vitro data is mandatory before using them in clinical practice. Nine spine segments were tested under compression and imaged with micro-computed tomography (µCT). The displacement field was calculated for each vertebra using a global digital volume correlation (DVC) approach. Subject-specific homogenised finite element models of each vertebra were built from µCT images, applying experimentally matched boundary conditions at the endplates. Numerical and experimental displacements, reaction forces, and locations showing higher strain concentrations were eventually compared. Additionally, given that µCT cannot be performed in clinical settings, the outcomes of a µCT-based model were also compared to those of a model built from clinical CT scans of the same specimen. Good agreement between DVC and µCT-based FE displacements was found, both for healthy (R² = 0.69 ÷ 0.83, RMSE = 3 ÷ 22%, max error < 45 μm) and metastatic (R² = 0.64 ÷ 0.93, RMSE = 5 ÷ 18%, max error < 54 μm) vertebrae. Strong correlations were found between µCT-based and clinical CT-based FE model outcomes (R² = 0.99, RMSE < 1.3%, max difference = 6 μm). Furthermore, the models qualitatively identified the most deformed regions identified with the experiments. In conclusion, the combination of experimental full-field technique and in-silico modelling enabled the development of a promising pipeline to validate bone strength predictors in the elastic range. Further improvements are needed to analyse vertebral post-yield behaviour better.</p>","PeriodicalId":489,"journal":{"name":"Biomechanics and Modeling in Mechanobiology","volume":" ","pages":"1017-1030"},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2025-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12162702/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143960300","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"From structure to mechanics: exploring the role of axons and interconnections in anisotropic behavior of brain white matter.","authors":"Fatemeh Atashgar, Mehdi Shafieian, Nabiollah Abolfathi","doi":"10.1007/s10237-025-01957-4","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10237-025-01957-4","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>According to various experimental studies, the role of axons in the brain's white matter (WM) is still a subject of debate: Is the role of axons in brain white matter (WM) limited to their functional significance, or do they also play a pivotal mechanical role in defining its anisotropic behavior? Micromechanics and computational models provide valuable tools for scientists to comprehend the underlying mechanisms of tissue behavior, taking into account the contribution of microstructures. In this review, we delve into the consideration of strain level, strain rates, and injury threshold to determine when WM should be regarded as anisotropic, as well as when the assumption of isotropy can be deemed acceptable. Additionally, we emphasize the potential mechanical significance of interconnections between glial cells-axons and glial cells-vessels. Moreover, we elucidate the directionality of WM stiffness under various loading conditions and define the possible roles of microstructural components in each scenario. Ultimately, this review aims to shed light on the significant mechanical contributions of axons in conjunction with glial cells, paving the way for the development of future multiscale models capable of predicting injuries and facilitating the discovery of applicable treatments.</p>","PeriodicalId":489,"journal":{"name":"Biomechanics and Modeling in Mechanobiology","volume":" ","pages":"779-810"},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2025-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143956734","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Computational construction and design optimization of a novel tri-tube heart valve.","authors":"Jirong Li, Yijiang Yu, Robert T Tranquillo","doi":"10.1007/s10237-025-01956-5","DOIUrl":"10.1007/s10237-025-01956-5","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>A finite-element-based algorithm for the in silico construction of a novel tri-tube heart valve was developed to facilitate optimization of the leaflet geometry. An anisotropic hyperelastic model fitted to high-strain rate planar equibiaxial tension and compression data was used to approximate the nonlinear and anisotropic material behavior of biologically-engineered tubes and simulate valve closure under steady back pressure and steady forward flow. Four metrics were considered to evaluate valve performance in simulated closure: coaptation area, regurgitation area, pinwheel index, and prolapse area. Response surfaces revealed competing objectives between metrics for a valve of target 24 mm diameter in terms of two design parameters, tube diameter and leaflet height. A multi-objective genetic algorithm determined an intermediate tube diameter and leaflet height (16 mm and 11 mm, respectively) of the design space as optimal. Additionally, steady flow simulations were performed using two-way fluid-structure interaction with selected designs to examine washout behind leaflets with particle tracking. One design close to the optimal point for valve closure indicated washout for particles initially distributed behind leaflets. Though comprehensive valve design optimization requires flow analysis over multiple valve cycles to capture all effects associated with flow, this methodology based on diastolic state geometry optimization followed by steady washout analysis reduces the space of design variables for further optimization.</p>","PeriodicalId":489,"journal":{"name":"Biomechanics and Modeling in Mechanobiology","volume":" ","pages":"1103-1121"},"PeriodicalIF":3.0,"publicationDate":"2025-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC12162730/pdf/","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"144140996","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":3,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}