The rate and direction of microvessel growth were modified to depend simultaneously on the ECM collagen anisotropy (orientation and degree of anisotropy) and density. We extended AngioFE to represent ECM collagen as deformable 3D ellipsoidal fibril distributions (EFDs). AngioFE is a plugin for FEBio (Finite Elements for Biomechanics) that simulates cell-matrix interactions during sprouting angiogenesis.
The objective of this study was to explore the role of ECM collagen anisotropy and density during sprouting angiogenesis through simulation in the AngioFE and FEBio modeling frameworks. Recent experimental evidence indicates that cell guidance is simultaneously influenced by the direction and intensity of alignment (i.e., degree of anisotropy) as well as the local collagen density. However, prior computational models have only considered the orientation of collagen as a model input. Computational simulation is emerging as a tool to investigate the role of matrix structural configurations on cell guidance. Extracellular matrix (ECM) collagen density and fibril anisotropy are thought to affect the development of new vasculatures during pathologic and homeostatic angiogenesis.
