title: Probing red blood cell mechanics, rheology and dynamics with a two-component multi-scale model.
abstract: This study is partially motivated by the validation of a new two-component multi-scale cell model we developed recently that treats the lipid bilayer and the cytoskeleton as two distinct components. Here, the whole cell model is validated and compared against several available experiments that examine red blood cell (RBC) mechanics, rheology and dynamics. First, we investigated RBC deformability in a microfluidic channel with a very small cross-sectional area and quantified the mechanical properties of the RBC membrane. Second, we simulated twisting torque cytometry and compared predicted rheological properties of the RBC membrane with experimental measurements. Finally, we modelled the tank-treading (TT) motion of a RBC in a shear flow and explored the effect of channel width variation on the TT frequency. We also investigated the effects of bilayer-cytoskeletal interactions on these experiments and our simulations clearly indicated that they play key roles in the determination of cell membrane mechanical, rheological and dynamical properties. These simulations serve as validation tests and moreover reveal the capabilities and limitations of the new whole cell model.
authors: Division of Applied Mathematics, Brown University, Providence, RI 02912, USA george_karniadakis@brown.edu.
authors: Xuejin
authors: X
authors: Li
authors: Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA.
authors: Zhangli
authors: Z
authors: Peng
authors: Computational Sciences and Mathematics Division, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Richland, WA 99354, USA.
authors: Huan
authors: H
authors: Lei
authors: Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA.
authors: Ming
authors: M
authors: Dao
authors: Division of Applied Mathematics, Brown University, Providence, RI 02912, USA.
authors: George Em
authors: GE
authors: Karniadakis
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001783:Blood Flow Velocity / Q000502:physiology; D001808:Blood Vessels / Q000502:physiology*; D002465:Cell Movement / Q000502:physiology; D048429:Cell Size; D003198:Computer Simulation; D055119:Elastic Modulus; D004912:Erythrocytes / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D040542:Mechanotransduction, Cellular / Q000502:physiology*; D008955:Models, Cardiovascular; D033081:Shear Strength / Q000502:physiology
keywords: dissipative particle dynamics; multi-scale modelling; red blood cell