2014/09/22 by Abhilash S. Nair, Brendon M. Baker, Nair, Abhilash +8
Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology · Medicine · #Biological Physics (physics.bio-ph) #Cell Behavior (q-bio.CB) #Cellular Mechanics and Interactions #FOS: Biological sciences #FOS: Physical sciences #Soft Condensed Matter (cond-mat.soft) #Tendon Structure and Treatment #Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine
paper · pdf · doi:10.48550/arxiv.1409.6216
openalex publication_date 2014/09/22 · openalex created_date 2022/10/03 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
Contractile forces exerted on the surrounding extracellular matrix (ECM) lead\nto the alignment and stretching of constituent fibers within the vicinity of\ncells. As a consequence, the matrix reorganizes to form thick bundles of\naligned fibers that enable force transmission over distances larger than the\nsize of the cells. Contractile force-mediated remodeling of ECM fibers has\nbearing on a number of physiologic and pathophysiologic phenomena. In this\nwork, we present a computational model to capture cell-mediated remodeling\nwithin fibrous matrices using finite element based discrete fiber network\nsimulations. The model is shown to accurately capture collagen alignment,\nheterogeneous deformations, and long-range force transmission observed\nexperimentally. The zone of mechanical influence surrounding a single\ncontractile cell and the interaction between two cells are predicted from the\nstrain-induced alignment of fibers. Through parametric studies, the effect of\ncell contractility and cell shape anisotropy on matrix remodeling and force\ntransmission are quantified and summarized in a phase diagram. For highly\ncontractile and elongated cells, we find a sensing distance that is ten times\nthe cell size, in agreement with experimental observations.\n