C.J. McConnell, M.E. DeMont and G.M. Wright. 1997. Microfibrils
provide nonlinear elastic behaviour in the abdominal
artery of the lobster Homarus americanus. Journal of Physiology
499(2), 513-526.
Summary
Microfibrils are becoming increasingly recognized as an
important component of the extracellular matrix. However, almost
nothing is known about their mechanical role in the diversity of
tissues in which they are found. Microfibrils form the principal
structural component in the wall of the abdominal artery of the
lobster Homarus americanus. We have used
previous estimates of
the mechancial properties of these microfibrils, estimates of
the fraction of the aorta wall volume occupied by the
microfibrils, and their angular distribution as a function of
strain, in a numerical model that predicts the macroscopic
mechanical properties of the whole tissue. Microfibrils alone,
when their reorientation and deformation are accounted for,
characterize the vessel's stress-strain behaviour. Evidence of
the evolutionary conservation of fibrillin between medusans,
echinoderms and vertebrates implies that the mechanical
properties of lobster microfibrils may apply to microfibrillar
function in other taxa. This will have profound implications on
the perceived roles of microfibrils in development, physiology
and disease.
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Edwin DeMont, Associate Professor
Biology Department, St. Francis Xavier University
P.O. Box 5000, Antigonish, Nova Scotia, B2G 2W5 Canada
Voice 902-867-5116 FAX 902-867-2389
edemont@juliet.stfx.ca -
November 14, 1996