Periodic Nanomechanical Stimulation in a Biokinetics Model Identifying Anabolic and Catabolic Pathways Associated With Cartilage Matrix Homeostasis.

Enhancing the available nanotechnology to describe physicochemical interactions during biokinetic regulation will strongly support cellular and molecular engineering efforts. In a recent mathematical model developed to extend the applicability of a statically loaded, single-cell biomechanical analysis, a biokinetic regulatory threshold was presented (Saha and Kohles, 2010, "A Distinct Catabolic to Anabolic Threshold Due to Single-Cell Static Nanomechanical Stimulation in a Cartilage Biokinetics Model," J. Nanotechnol. Eng. Med., 1(3), p. 031005). Results described multiscale mechanobiology in terms of catabolic to anabolic pathways. In the present study, we expand the mathematical model to continue exploring the nanoscale biomolecular response within a controlled microenvironment. Here, we introduce a dynamic mechanical stimulus for regulating cartilage molecule synthesis. Model iterations indicate the identification of a biomathematical mechanism balancing the harmony between catabolic and anabolic states. Relative load limits were defined to distinguish between "healthy" and "injurious" biomolecule accumulations. The presented mathematical framework provides a specific algorithm from which to explore biokinetic regulation.