Wall Shear Stress Distribution on the Surface of Realistic Endothelial Cell Model

Wall shear stress induced by blood flow affects morphology and physiology of endothelial cells. The specific mechanisms of mechano-biological interactions alternating shapes and functions have not been identified in the cells, because of the lack of a detailed description of microscopic flow near the cell surface. We therefore developed velocimetry using expanded cell model and demonstrated that the microscopic flow depended on three-dimensional cell shape (Fukushima et al., 1997, 1998). Furthermore, we determined wall shear stress distribution on cultured endothelial cells experimentally.