Numerical modeling of cartilage growth under mechanical stresses. Mechanical and biological analysis on in vitro «micropellet» model

The project concerns the modeling of the growth of new-cartilage samples generated from mesenchymal stem cells. These samples reproduce the embryonic formation of cartilage. We first propose to set up a device for analysing the mechanical features of neocartilage samples and then to investigate the role of mechanical stresses on the extra-cellular matrix production. This approach aims at evaluating and classifying the influence of mechanical stresses in respect of the growth factors on growth process.