Fiber Network Models Predict Enhanced Cell Mechanosensing on Fibrous Gels.

ABSTRACT: The propagation of mechanical signals through nonlinear fibrous tissues is much more extensive than through continuous synthetic hydrogels. Results from recent studies indicate that increased mechanical propagation arises from the fibrous nature of the material rather than the strain-stiffening property. The relative importance of different parameters of the fibrous network structure to this propagation, however, remains unclear. In this work, we directly compared the mechanical response of substrates of varying thickness subjected to a constant cell traction force using either a nonfibrous strain-stiffening continuum-based model or a volume-averaged fiber network model consisting of two different types of fiber network structures: one with low fiber connectivity (growth networks) and one

SUBMITTER: Aghvami M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5018119 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature