Palacio-Torralba Javier, Good Daniel W, McNeill S Alan, Reuben Robert L, Chen Yuhang
Institute of Mechanical, Process and Energy Engineering, School of Engineering and Physical Sciences, Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh EH14 4AS, UK.
Edinburgh Urological Cancer Group, Division of Pathology Laboratories, Institute of Genetics and Molecular Medicine, University of Edinburgh, Western General Hospital, Crewe Road South, Edinburgh EH4 2XU, UK.
J R Soc Interface. 2017 Apr;14(129). doi: 10.1098/rsif.2017.0088.
It is well known that the changes in tissue microstructure associated with certain pathophysiological conditions can influence its mechanical properties. Quantitatively relating the tissue microstructure to the macroscopic mechanical properties could lead to significant improvements in clinical diagnosis, especially when the mechanical properties of the tissue are used as diagnostic indices such as in digital rectal examination and elastography. In this study, a novel method of imposing periodic boundary conditions in non-periodic finite-element meshes is presented. This method is used to develop quantitative relationships between tissue microstructure and its apparent mechanical properties for benign and malignant tissue at various length scales. Finally, the inter-patient variation in the tissue properties is also investigated. Results show significant changes in the statistical distribution of the mechanical properties at different length scales. More importantly the loss of the normal differentiation of glandular structure of cancerous tissue has been demonstrated to lead to changes in mechanical properties and anisotropy. The proposed methodology is not limited to a particular tissue or material and the example used could help better understand how changes in the tissue microstructure caused by pathological conditions influence the mechanical properties, ultimately leading to more sensitive and accurate diagnostic technologies.
众所周知，与某些病理生理状况相关的组织微观结构变化会影响其力学性能。将组织微观结构与宏观力学性能进行定量关联，可能会显著改善临床诊断，特别是当组织的力学性能用作诊断指标时，如在直肠指检和弹性成像中。在本研究中，提出了一种在非周期性有限元网格中施加周期性边界条件的新方法。该方法用于在不同长度尺度上建立良性和恶性组织的组织微观结构与其表观力学性能之间的定量关系。最后，还研究了患者间组织特性的差异。结果表明，在不同长度尺度下，力学性能的统计分布有显著变化。更重要的是，已证明癌组织腺结构正常分化的丧失会导致力学性能和各向异性的变化。所提出的方法不限于特定的组织或材料，所使用的示例有助于更好地理解病理状况引起的组织微观结构变化如何影响力学性能，最终带来更灵敏和准确的诊断技术。
