Computational Mechanobiology in Cartilage and Bone Tissue Engineering: From Cell Phenotype to Tissue Structure

Abstract

This chapter gives a short overview of computational models in cartilage and bone tissue engineering with a focus on how mechanical cues can regulate tissue regeneration on multiple levels, from cell phenotype to tissue architecture. The chapter begins with a brief review of single cell models with a focus on cell-substrate interactions and cytoskeletal remodelling. After summarising a number of current theories for mechanoregulated tissue differentiation, we explain how such hypotheses can either be corroborated or rejected by attempting to simulate in vivo regenerative events. We then outline a recently introduced model for MSC differentiation based on substrate stiffness and oxygen tension as well as how tissue phenotype and organisation can be explored simultaneously within a computational model. The application of computational models to aid in the design of scaffolds for bone and cartilage repair is demonstrated. We also outline how such models can be used in the design and analysis of bioreactors, demonstrating how changes in tissue structure in response to mechanical loading during bioreactor culture can potentially impact the mechanical properties of the final engineered constructs. The chapter closes with a short overview of multiscale models with relevance to tissue engineering.