CAREER: Theoretical and Numerical Investigation of Stress-Regulated Growth and Remodeling of Soft Tissues

活体器官对机械负荷的反应不仅包括变形，还包括生长、吸收和结构重塑。虽然软组织的弹性研究相对较好，但力学因素与适应性生长之间的相互作用仍然知之甚少。该项目的目标是通过(1)开发和评估血管系统应力调节生长和重塑的生物力学模型来了解耦合应力-生长运动；(2)建立模拟耦合应力增长运动的有限元公式；(3)研究动脉瘤生长和重塑的力学方面。该研究将为软组织的生物力学分析带来新的维度。期望通过本研究能更好地理解组织适应行为及其与生理功能的关系。本项目拟将研究成果纳入课堂教学，在连续介质力学、计算力学和血管力学课程中引入新的教学模块。它还为研究生和本科生提供了从事前沿研究项目的教育机会。

Living organs respond to mechanical load not only by deformation, but also by growth, resorption and structural remodeling. While the elasticity of soft tissues is relatively well-studied, the interaction between mechanical factors and adaptive growth remains poorly understood. The goal of the project is to gain understanding of coupled stress-growth motion through (1) developing and evaluating biomechanics models for stress-regulated growth and remodeling in vascular system; (2) developing finite element formulations for the simulation of coupled stress-growth motion; and (3) investigating the mechanical aspect of aneurysm growth and remodeling. The research will bring new dimensions into the biomechanical analysis of soft tissues. A better understanding of tissue adaptive behavior and the relation to physiological functions is expected to be obtained out of this research. The project plans to incorporate the research results into classroom teaching by introducing new teaching modules for continuum mechanics, computational mechanics and vascular mechanics courses. It also offers educational opportunities for graduate and undergraduate students to work on leading edge research projects.