Computational modeling and structural improvement of a pneumatically actuated concentric double-shell structure for cell stretching

Recent studies have shown that mechanical stimulation by means of mechanical stretching can enhance the cardiac differentiation and proliferation. Thus, several types of devices have been developed for mechanically stimulating the cardiomyocytes (CMs). However, some of the emerging devices need to be improved to satisfy the specific needs in applications. In this study, a computational model is developed for a novel cell stretching device by a finite element (FE) approach, and two significant parameters in terms of in-plane strain and out-of-plane displacement of the cell substrate are improved. This paper describes a method of geometric parametric variation to enhance the design and reports a reduction of the out-of-plane displacement from 315 μm to 4.8μm, while maintaining the maximum in-plain strain of more than 5%.