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Nanomaterials
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Nano-scale Mechanics of Biological Materials
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Nano-scale Mechanics of Biological Materials

A special issue of Nanomaterials (ISSN 2079-4991).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 March 2018) | Viewed by 25796

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Arvind Agarwal

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Guest Editor
Nanomechanics and Nanotribology Laboratory, Florida International University, 10555 West Flagler Street, Miami, FL 33174, USA
Interests: thermal spray; ultrahigh temperature ceramics; nanotube composites; nanoindentation; spark plasma sintering
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Joshua Hutcheson

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Biomedical Engineering, Florida International University, Miami, FL 33174, USA
Interests: aortic valve development; aortic valve disease; atherosclerosis; vascular calcification; mechanobiology
Dr. Debrupa Lahiri

E-Mail
Guest Editor
Dept. of Metallurgical and Materials Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology, Roorkee

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues, 

Nanomechanics has played a vital role in pushing our capability to detect and probe the properties of human-made biomaterials and natural biological species, leading to a deeper knowledge and superior strategies for the healthcare. This special issue is focused on addressing the important role being played by nanomechanics in the overlapping areas of biological sciences, mechanical engineering, materials engineering and biomedical engineering. Advanced nanomechanical characterization techniques have enhanced our understanding of the kinetics and mechanics of biological species, such as proteins, cells, and tissues. As a result, research on the nanomechanics-based diagnosis of life-threatening ailments like cancer and cardiac disorders has gained traction. Nanomechanics is also playing a vital role in regenerative medicine, as mechanics of tissues are emulated to develop scaffolds for tissue engineering. Biomimetic orthopedic implants that mimic the mechanics of bone have been developed for superior performance and integration in the body. Investigation of interfacial contact mechanics between the cells and scaffolds, between the surgical tools and body tissues, and between the artificial implants and the host body environment are the topics of active research in the area of nanomechanics to provide superior healthcare. This Special Issue invites original research and short review articles from the leading experts in the field to provide insight to some of the recent, ongoing and future developments in nanomechanics for healthcare.

Prof. Dr. Arvind Agarwal
Dr. Joshua Hutcheson
Dr. Debrupa Lahiri
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Nanomaterials is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2900 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • nanomechanics
  • atomic force microscopy
  • nanoindentation, cells and tissues
  • bones
  • cardiovascular
  • diagnostics

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

20 pages, 9169 KiB  
Article
Enhanced Tribological and Bacterial Resistance of Carbon Nanotube with Ceria- and Silver-Incorporated Hydroxyapatite Biocoating
by Aditi Pandey, Anup Kumar Patel, Ariharan S., Vikram Kumar, Rajeev Kumar Sharma, Satish Kanhed, Vinod Kumar Nigam, Anup Keshri, Arvind Agarwal and Kantesh Balani
Nanomaterials 2018, 8(6), 363; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano8060363 - 24 May 2018
Cited by 28 | Viewed by 6652
Abstract
Pertaining to real-life applications (by scaling up) of hydroxyapatite (HA)-based materials, herein is a study illustrating the role of carbon nanotube (CNT) reinforcement with ceria (CeO2) and silver (Ag) in HA on titanium alloy (TiAl6V4) substrate, utilizing the plasma-spraying processing technique, [...] Read more.
Pertaining to real-life applications (by scaling up) of hydroxyapatite (HA)-based materials, herein is a study illustrating the role of carbon nanotube (CNT) reinforcement with ceria (CeO2) and silver (Ag) in HA on titanium alloy (TiAl6V4) substrate, utilizing the plasma-spraying processing technique, is presented. When compared with pure HA coating enhanced hardness (from 2.5 to 5.8 GPa), elastic modulus (from 110 to 171 GPa), and fracture toughness (from 0.7 to 2.2 MPa·m1/2) elicited a reduced wear rate from 55.3 × 10−5 mm3·N−1·m−1 to 2.1 × 10−5 mm3·N−1·m−1 in HA-CNT-CeO2-Ag. Besides, an order of magnitude lower Archard’s wear constant and a 41% decreased shear stress by for HA-CNT-CeO2-Ag coating depicted the effect of higher hardness and modulus of a material to control its wear phenomenon. Antibacterial property of 46% (bactericidal) is ascribed to Ag in addition to CNT-CeO2 in HA. Nonetheless, the composite coating also portrayed exaggerated L929 fibroblast cell growth (4.8 times more than HA), which was visualized as flat and elongated cells with multiple filopodial protrusions. Hence, synthesis of a material with enhanced mechanical integrity resulting in tribological resistance and cytocompatible efficacy was achieved, thereupon making HA-CNT-CeO2-Ag a scalable potent material for real-life load-bearing implantable bio-coating. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nano-scale Mechanics of Biological Materials)
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21 pages, 35233 KiB  
Article
Engineering a 3D-Bioprinted Model of Human Heart Valve Disease Using Nanoindentation-Based Biomechanics
by Dewy C. Van der Valk, Casper F. T. Van der Ven, Mark C. Blaser, Joshua M. Grolman, Pin-Jou Wu, Owen S. Fenton, Lang H. Lee, Mark W. Tibbitt, Jason L. Andresen, Jennifer R. Wen, Anna H. Ha, Fabrizio Buffolo, Alain Van Mil, Carlijn V. C. Bouten, Simon C. Body, David J. Mooney, Joost P. G. Sluijter, Masanori Aikawa, Jesper Hjortnaes, Robert Langer and Elena Aikawaadd Show full author list remove Hide full author list
Nanomaterials 2018, 8(5), 296; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano8050296 - 3 May 2018
Cited by 77 | Viewed by 12824
Abstract
In calcific aortic valve disease (CAVD), microcalcifications originating from nanoscale calcifying vesicles disrupt the aortic valve (AV) leaflets, which consist of three (biomechanically) distinct layers: the fibrosa, spongiosa, and ventricularis. CAVD has no pharmacotherapy and lacks in vitro models as a result of [...] Read more.
In calcific aortic valve disease (CAVD), microcalcifications originating from nanoscale calcifying vesicles disrupt the aortic valve (AV) leaflets, which consist of three (biomechanically) distinct layers: the fibrosa, spongiosa, and ventricularis. CAVD has no pharmacotherapy and lacks in vitro models as a result of complex valvular biomechanical features surrounding resident mechanosensitive valvular interstitial cells (VICs). We measured layer-specific mechanical properties of the human AV and engineered a three-dimensional (3D)-bioprinted CAVD model that recapitulates leaflet layer biomechanics for the first time. Human AV leaflet layers were separated by microdissection, and nanoindentation determined layer-specific Young’s moduli. Methacrylated gelatin (GelMA)/methacrylated hyaluronic acid (HAMA) hydrogels were tuned to duplicate layer-specific mechanical characteristics, followed by 3D-printing with encapsulated human VICs. Hydrogels were exposed to osteogenic media (OM) to induce microcalcification, and VIC pathogenesis was assessed by near infrared or immunofluorescence microscopy. Median Young’s moduli of the AV layers were 37.1, 15.4, and 26.9 kPa (fibrosa/spongiosa/ventricularis, respectively). The fibrosa and spongiosa Young’s moduli matched the 3D 5% GelMa/1% HAMA UV-crosslinked hydrogels. OM stimulation of VIC-laden bioprinted hydrogels induced microcalcification without apoptosis. We report the first layer-specific measurements of human AV moduli and a novel 3D-bioprinted CAVD model that potentiates microcalcification by mimicking the native AV mechanical environment. This work sheds light on valvular mechanobiology and could facilitate high-throughput drug-screening in CAVD. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nano-scale Mechanics of Biological Materials)
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18 pages, 8202 KiB  
Article
A Tensile Constitutive Relationship and a Finite Element Model of Electrospun Nanofibrous Mats
by Yunlei Yin, Zhongxiang Pan and Jie Xiong
Nanomaterials 2018, 8(1), 29; https://doi.org/10.3390/nano8010029 - 8 Jan 2018
Cited by 21 | Viewed by 5710
Abstract
It is difficult to establish a numerical model for a certain structure of electrospun nanofibrous mats, due to their high porosity and non-linear characteristics, that can fully consider these characteristics and describe their mechanical behaviors. In this paper, an analytical method of meso-mechanics [...] Read more.
It is difficult to establish a numerical model for a certain structure of electrospun nanofibrous mats, due to their high porosity and non-linear characteristics, that can fully consider these characteristics and describe their mechanical behaviors. In this paper, an analytical method of meso-mechanics was adopted to establish the tensile constitutive relationship between a single fiber and mats from fiber-web microstructures. Meanwhile, a macroscopic finite element model was developed and verified through uniaxial tensile stress-strain experimental data of silk fibroin (SF)/polycaprolactone (PCL) nanofibrous mats. The compared results show that the constitutive relation and finite element model could satisfactorily express elastic-plastic tensile mechanical behaviors of the polymer. This model helps regulate the microstructure of nanofibrous mats to meet the mechanical requirements in engineering applications. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Nano-scale Mechanics of Biological Materials)
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