BRITE Pivot: Tissue Research Advances for New Surgeries-Facilitating Organ Reconstruction with Mechanics

这个促进工程变革和公平进步的研究思路（BRITE）枢纽项目将开发组织力学特性数据和先进的计算机建模方法，以改善针对变性人的手术。这项工作将机械地表征来自人类生殖器的组织。这项工作将利用研究人员现有的专业知识来评估软组织的力学，如韧带和肌腱。具体来说，这项工作将根据实际组织的测量数据，在微观水平上建立这些组织的行为的计算机模型。该模型将用于评估所有性别生殖器组织之间的差异。这项工作将提高我们对所有人生殖生物力学的理解。通过在手术计划和程序（包括性别确认手术）中包括这种组织特性的工程评估，结果可能最终改善医疗保健。该项目还将通过在研究和研究社区内对性别概念化的对话，促进工程生物力学研究界的包容。这项研究的重点是为性别确认手术提供第一个基于科学的数据，这些手术可以改变患有性别焦虑症的个体的生殖器，使其符合他们想要的性别。将对人类生殖器组织进行最先进的力学测试，以充分表征其弹性和粘弹性特性，这些特性对性别确认等手术的成功至关重要。将开发新的数学和计算模型来捕捉男性和女性生殖器之间的异同。通过BRITE Pivot项目，首席研究员将获得先进数值技术方面的新专业知识，以减少性别确认手术数值模拟的计算复杂性。高效和强大的计算工具将导致新型工程组织和性别确认手术指南的发展，解决变性人现有的医疗挑战。因此，该项目的成果将促进医学研究中的性别多样性和平等，同时也将改变研究界对二元性别的假设。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This Boosting Research Ideas for Transformative and Equitable Advances in Engineering (BRITE) Pivot project will develop tissue mechanical property data and advanced computer modeling approaches to improve surgeries specific to transgender people. This work will mechanically characterize tissue from human genitalia. This work will leverage the researchers’ existing expertise in evaluating the mechanics of soft tissues, such as ligaments and tendons. Specifically, this work will make a computer model of how these tissues behave at the microscopic level based on data from measurements of actual tissue. The model will be used to evaluate differences among genital tissues of all genders. This work will improve our understanding of reproductive biomechanics of all persons. The results may ultimately improve healthcare by including this engineering assessment of tissue properties in surgical planning and procedures, including gender confirmation surgeries. This project will also promote inclusion in the engineering biomechanics research community through dialogue about conceptualization of gender, both within research and within the research community.This research focuses on providing the first scientific-based data for gender confirmation surgeries that alter the genitalia of individuals with gender dysphoria to conform to their desired gender. State-of-the-art mechanical testing will be conducted on tissues from human genitalia to fully characterize their elastic and viscoelastic properties that are crucial for the success of surgeries including those for gender confirmation. Novel mathematical and computational models will be developed to capture both the similarities and differences between male and female genitalia. Through this BRITE Pivot project, the principal investigator will gain new expertise in advanced numerical techniques for reducing the computational complexity of numerical simulations for gender confirmation surgeries. Efficient and robust computational tools will lead to the development of novel engineered tissues and guidelines for gender confirmation surgeries, addressing the extant healthcare challenges of transgender people. The outcome of this project will thus promote gender diversity and equality in medical research while also changing the assumption of binary genders in the research community.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.