The mechanical microenvironment of high concentration agarose for applying deformation to primary chondrocytes.

ABSTRACT: Cartilage and chondrocytes experience loading that causes alterations in chondrocyte biological activity. In vivo chondrocytes are surrounded by a pericellular matrix with a stiffness of ~25-200kPa. Understanding the mechanical loading environment of the chondrocyte is of substantial interest for understanding chondrocyte mechanotransduction. The first objective of this study was to analyze the spatial variability of applied mechanical deformations in physiologically stiff agarose on cellular and sub-cellular length scales. Fluorescent microspheres were embedded in physiologically stiff agarose hydrogels. Microsphere positions were measured via confocal microscopy and used to calculate displacement and strain fields as a function of spatial position. The second objective was to assess the

SUBMITTER: Zignego DL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4014520 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature