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European Cells & Materials Jan 2015Foetal movements commence at seven weeks of gestation, with the foetal movement repertoire including twitches, whole body movements, stretches, isolated limb movements,... (Review)
Review
Foetal movements commence at seven weeks of gestation, with the foetal movement repertoire including twitches, whole body movements, stretches, isolated limb movements, breathing movements, head and neck movements, jaw movements (including yawning, sucking and swallowing) and hiccups by ten weeks of gestational age. There are two key biomechanical aspects to gross foetal movements; the first being that the foetus moves in a dynamically changing constrained physical environment in which the freedom to move becomes increasingly restricted with increasing foetal size and decreasing amniotic fluid. Therefore, the mechanical environment experienced by the foetus affects its ability to move freely. Secondly, the mechanical forces induced by foetal movements are crucial for normal skeletal development, as evidenced by a number of conditions and syndromes for which reduced or abnormal foetal movements are implicated, such as developmental dysplasia of the hip, arthrogryposis and foetal akinesia deformation sequence. This review examines both the biomechanical effects of the physical environment on foetal movements through discussion of intrauterine factors, such as space, foetal positioning and volume of amniotic fluid, and the biomechanical role of gross foetal movements in human skeletal development through investigation of the effects of abnormal movement on the bones and joints. This review also highlights computational simulations of foetal movements that attempt to determine the mechanical forces acting on the foetus as it moves. Finally, avenues for future research into foetal movement biomechanics are highlighted, which have potential impact for a diverse range of fields including foetal medicine, musculoskeletal disorders and tissue engineering.
Topics: Biomechanical Phenomena; Computer Simulation; Fetal Movement; Gestational Age; Humans; Models, Biological; Musculoskeletal Abnormalities
PubMed: 25552425
DOI: 10.22203/ecm.v029a01 -
Medical Engineering & Physics Oct 2019This editorial pays tribute to the work of Professor John P. Paul and his team at the University of Strathclyde in the 1960s and '70s, and subsequently by the...
This editorial pays tribute to the work of Professor John P. Paul and his team at the University of Strathclyde in the 1960s and '70s, and subsequently by the Strathclyde Rehabilitation Engineering Group, as featured in the journal Medical Engineering & Physics. It also includes a consideration of the nature of full biomechanical analysis of movement and how it can be mathematically modelled and physically recorded, the different approaches taken by Paul's and Winter's groups, respectively, and what a full biomechanical model should include in the future. The article also attempts to signpost the reader to future developments in the field, and how the techniques pioneered by Paul in the 1960s may influence Clinical Biomechanics and Rehabilitation in the years to come.
Topics: Biomechanical Phenomena; Engineering; History, 20th Century; History, 21st Century; Humans
PubMed: 31554578
DOI: 10.1016/j.medengphy.2019.08.009 -
Comptes Rendus Biologies Nov 2021Metastatic progression, which begins with the invasion and migration of tumor cells from a primary tumor, marks a major turning point in the evolution of cancer. Indeed,... (Review)
Review
Metastatic progression, which begins with the invasion and migration of tumor cells from a primary tumor, marks a major turning point in the evolution of cancer. Indeed, it eventually leads to the formation of secondary tumors, the metastases, which are very often responsible for the patient's death. Understanding the mechanisms controlling the different steps of this process, as well as those explaining the fundamental phenomenon of organotropism (i.e. the distribution of metastases in distant organs by a non-random and tumor-specific process), is essential to define new innovative therapeutic solutions. In this review paper, we will present how biomechanics is an essential element to this understanding, and will emphasize the importance of this orthogonal and promising angle of study as well as our laboratory's focus on the late stages of dissemination, arrest and extravasation of circulating cancer cells and factors secreted by the primary tumor such as extracellular vesicles.
Topics: Biomechanical Phenomena; Humans; Neoplasms
PubMed: 35786629
DOI: 10.5802/crbiol.62 -
Journal of Cataract and Refractive... Jun 2014Many algorithms exist for the topographic/tomographic detection of corneas at risk for post-refractive surgery ectasia. It is proposed that the reason for the difficulty... (Review)
Review
UNLABELLED
Many algorithms exist for the topographic/tomographic detection of corneas at risk for post-refractive surgery ectasia. It is proposed that the reason for the difficulty in finding a universal screening tool based on corneal morphologic features is that curvature, elevation, and pachymetric changes are all secondary signs of keratoconus and post-refractive surgery ectasia and that the primary abnormality is in the biomechanical properties. It is further proposed that the biomechanical modification is focal in nature, rather than a uniform generalized weakening, and that the focal reduction in elastic modulus precipitates a cycle of biomechanical decompensation that is driven by asymmetry in the biomechanical properties. This initiates a repeating cycle of increased strain, stress redistribution, and subsequent focal steepening and thinning. Various interventions are described in terms of how this cycle of biomechanical decompensation is interrupted, such as intrastromal corneal ring segments, which redistribute the corneal stress, and collagen crosslinking, which modifies the basic structural properties.
FINANCIAL DISCLOSURES
Proprietary or commercial disclosures are listed after the references.
Topics: Biomechanical Phenomena; Corneal Stroma; Corneal Surgery, Laser; Corneal Topography; Dilatation, Pathologic; Elasticity; Finite Element Analysis; Humans; Keratoconus; Prosthesis Implantation; Stress, Mechanical
PubMed: 24774009
DOI: 10.1016/j.jcrs.2014.04.013 -
RMD Open Nov 2023Increasing evidence suggests that there is a pivotal role for physical force (mechanotransduction) in the initiation and/or the perpetuation of spondyloarthritis; the... (Review)
Review
Increasing evidence suggests that there is a pivotal role for physical force (mechanotransduction) in the initiation and/or the perpetuation of spondyloarthritis; the review contained herein examines that evidence. Furthermore, we know that damage and inflammation can limit spinal mobility, but is there a cycle created by altered spinal mobility leading to additional damage and inflammation?Over the past several years, mechanotransduction, the mechanism by which mechanical perturbation influences gene expression and cellular behaviour, has recently gained popularity because of emerging data from both animal models and human studies of the pathogenesis of ankylosing spondylitis (AS). In this review, we provide evidence towards an appreciation of the unsolved paradigm of how biomechanical forces may play a role in the initiation and propagation of AS.
Topics: Humans; Biomechanical Phenomena; Mechanotransduction, Cellular; Severity of Illness Index; Spondylarthritis; Spondylitis, Ankylosing; Inflammation
PubMed: 37949613
DOI: 10.1136/rmdopen-2023-003372 -
Protein & Cell Jul 2014Cells sense various in vivo mechanical stimuli, which initiate downstream signaling to mechanical forces. While a body of evidences is presented on the impact of limited... (Review)
Review
Cells sense various in vivo mechanical stimuli, which initiate downstream signaling to mechanical forces. While a body of evidences is presented on the impact of limited mechanical regulators in past decades, the mechanisms how biomechanical responses globally affect cell function need to be addressed. Complexity and diversity of in vivo mechanical clues present distinct patterns of shear flow, tensile stretch, or mechanical compression with various parametric combination of its magnitude, duration, or frequency. Thus, it is required to understand, from the viewpoint of mechanobiology, what mechanical features of cells are, why mechanical properties are different among distinct cell types, and how forces are transduced to downstream biochemical signals. Meanwhile, those in vitro isolated mechanical stimuli are usually coupled together in vivo, suggesting that the different factors that are in effect individually could be canceled out or orchestrated with each other. Evidently, omics analysis, a powerful tool in the field of system biology, is advantageous to combine with mechanobiology and then to map the full-set of mechanically sensitive proteins and transcripts encoded by its genome. This new emerging field, namely mechanomics, makes it possible to elucidate the global responses under systematically-varied mechanical stimuli. This review discusses the current advances in the related fields of mechanomics and elaborates how cells sense external forces and activate the biological responses.
Topics: Biomechanical Phenomena; Gene Expression Regulation; Humans; Mechanotransduction, Cellular; Models, Biological; Proteome; Stress, Physiological; Transcriptome
PubMed: 24756566
DOI: 10.1007/s13238-014-0057-9 -
International Journal of Environmental... Apr 2022Padel is a modern doubles racket sport which has become popular around the world in the last decades. There has been an increase in the quantity of scientific research... (Review)
Review
Padel is a modern doubles racket sport which has become popular around the world in the last decades. There has been an increase in the quantity of scientific research about this sport in the last years. Therefore, the main objective of this scoping review is to provide an updated contextualization of research regarding padel. PRISMA ScR was used in order to search for articles fulfilling the inclusion criteria in five fields of interest: the anthropometric profile, physiology and physical performance, biomechanics, the epidemiology of injuries, and match analyses Seventy-seven records were included in the study. Padel is an emerging sport both in sport and research terms. This scoping review provides coaches and researchers with all the knowledge available in the five fields of interest. Furthermore, this study enables them to make a map of the current state of the research about padel, and it opens up doors to future investigations.
Topics: Anthropometry; Biomechanical Phenomena; Knowledge; Outcome Assessment, Health Care; Sports
PubMed: 35410074
DOI: 10.3390/ijerph19074395 -
Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology... May 2021Lateral hindfoot impingement (LHI) is a subtype of ankle impingement syndrome with classic MRI findings. Biomechanically, LHI is the sequela of lateral transfer of...
Lateral hindfoot impingement (LHI) is a subtype of ankle impingement syndrome with classic MRI findings. Biomechanically, LHI is the sequela of lateral transfer of weight bearing from the central talar dome to the lateral talus and fibula. The transfer occurs due to collapse of the medial arch of the foot, most commonly from posterior tibial tendon (PTT) and spring ligament (SL) insufficiency. Clinical features include lateral hindfoot pain, deformity, and overpronation on gait analysis. MRI changes continuously reflect the altered biomechanics as the syndrome progresses over time, including typical and often sequential changes of PTT and SL failure, increasing heel valgus, talocalcaneal and subfibular impingement, and finally lateral soft tissue entrapment. In addition to diagnosis, MRI is a useful adjunct to plan surgical treatment.
Topics: Biomechanical Phenomena; Flatfoot; Humans; Ligaments, Articular; Magnetic Resonance Imaging
PubMed: 34003130
DOI: 10.5152/dir.2021.20268 -
Journal of Dental Research Mar 2018The load-bearing dentoalveolar fibrous joint is composed of biomechanically active periodontal ligament (PDL), bone, cementum, and the synergistic entheses of PDL-bone... (Review)
Review
The load-bearing dentoalveolar fibrous joint is composed of biomechanically active periodontal ligament (PDL), bone, cementum, and the synergistic entheses of PDL-bone and PDL-cementum. Physiologic and pathologic loads on the dentoalveolar fibrous joint prompt natural shifts in strain gradients within mineralized and fibrous tissues and trigger a cascade of biochemical events within the widened and narrowed sites of the periodontal complex. This review highlights data from in situ biomechanical simulations that provide tooth movements relative to the alveolar socket. The methods and subsequent results provide a reasonable approximation of strain-regulated biochemical events resulting in mesial mineral formation and distal resorption events within microanatomical regions at the ligament-tethered/enthesial ends. These biochemical events, including expressions of biglycan, decorin, chondroitin sulfated neuroglial 2, osteopontin, and bone sialoprotein and localization of various hypertrophic progenitors, are observed at the alkaline phosphatase-positive widened site, resulting in mineral formation and osteoid/cementoid layers. On the narrowed side, tartrate-resistant acid phosphatase regions can lead to a sequence of clastic activities resulting in resorption pits in bone and cementum. These strain-regulated biochemical and subsequently biomineralization events in the load-bearing periodontal complex are critical for maintenance of the periodontal space and overall macroscale joint biomechanics.
Topics: Adaptation, Physiological; Animals; Biomechanical Phenomena; Bone and Bones; Dental Cementum; Dental Stress Analysis; Humans; Mastication; Mouth Diseases; Periodontal Ligament; Tooth Crown
PubMed: 29364757
DOI: 10.1177/0022034517744556 -
Biological Chemistry Aug 2005
Topics: Biomechanical Phenomena; Cell Physiological Phenomena; Genetic Techniques; Macromolecular Substances; Molecular Biology; Virology
PubMed: 16201865
DOI: 10.1515/BC.2005.083