Single Fibril Mechanics

描述(由申请人提供)： 这一探索性的R21建议是建立一种新型的微电子机械系统(MEMS)设备，用于直接测量胶原原纤维的机械性能。通常，这些性质是从更大规模的测量结果中推断出来的，这使得从更高层次的结构-功能关系中区分纳米级变得困难。拟议中的设备是对现有MEMS设备的改进，该设备最初是为了在微尺度上测试硅材料而设计的。我们已经修改了装置的设计，以便用于模数较低的较小样品。该设备填补了用于测量单分子的皮牛级技术和商业上可用于研究微米到毫米大小的样品的毫牛顿设备之间的空白。我们团队使用这台机器的主要目的是测试与骨骼相关的胶原纤维。然而，我们预计该设备将在从肌腱和韧带到软骨和骨的组织中研究细胞外基质纤维方面具有广泛的适用性。具体目标 1.设计和制造用于测试纳米纤维的微电子机械系统(MEMS) 2.开发和实施将纳米纤维连接到MEMS设备的协议 3.使用胶原蛋白纤维测试设备和方案。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): This exploratory R21 proposal is to build a novel microelectromechanical system (MEMS) device for direct measurement of the mechanical properties of a collagen fibril. Usually these properties are inferred from larger scale measurements' yielding model dependent results and making it difficult to sort out nanoscale from higher level structure-function relationships. The proposed device is a modification of an existing MEMS device originally designed to test silicon materials at the microscale. We have modified the design of the device for use with smaller specimens having lower moduli. The device fills in a gap between the piconewton level techniques used to measure single molecules and the millinewton devices commercially available for the study of micron to millimeter sized samples. Our group's use of the machine will be primarily to test collagen fibrils relevant to bone. However, we expect the device will have wide applicability in the study of extracellular matrix fibrils in tissues ranging from tendon and ligament to cartilage and bone. Specific Aims 1. Design and fabricate a Microelectromechanical System (MEMS) useful for testing nanofibrils 2. Develop and implement protocols for attaching nanofibrils to MEMS device 3. Test device and protocols using collagen fibrils.