A constitutive model of soft tissue: from nanoscale collagen to tissue continuum.
Soft collagenous tissue features many hierarchies of structure, starting from tropocollagen molecules that form fibrils, and proceeding to a bundle of fibrils that form fibers. Here we report the development of an atomistically informed continuum model of collagenous tissue. Results from full atomistic and molecular modeling are linked with a continuum theory of a fiber-reinforced composite, handshaking the fibril scale to the fiber and continuum scale in a hierarchical multi-scale simulation approach. Our model enables us to study the continuum-level response of the tissue as a function of cross-link density, making a link between nanoscale collagen features and material properties at larger tissue scales. The results illustrate a strong dependence of the continuum response as a function of nanoscopic structural features, providing evidence for the notion that the molecular basis for protein materials is important in defining their larger-scale mechanical properties.
Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Northwestern University, 2145 Sheridan Road, Evanston, IL 60208-3109, USA.
Huang
H
Tang
Markus J
MJ
Buehler
Brian
B
Moran
D001696:Biomechanical Phenomena; D003094:Collagen / Q000737:chemistry*; D003238:Connective Tissue / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000502:physiology*; D004548:Elasticity; D008422:Materials Testing; D008958:Models, Molecular; D053758:Nanoparticles / Q000737:chemistry; D013314:Stress, Mechanical
D003094:Collagen