Mechanostimulation Protocols for Cardiac Tissue Engineering

Figure 2

Schematic description of significant physical stimuli applied to cells growing in a bioreactor. A spinner flask/rotating vessel (a) improves nutrient and gas distribution by mixing culture media. Perfusion-based bioreactors (b) promote cell proliferation and matrix production via pulsatile flow and shear forces. Dynamic loading chambers (c, d) are intended to apply defined mechanical forces such as (cyclic) unidirectional (c) or biaxial (d) deformation to generate a strain.