Project Description
There is a growing demand for the development of precision strategies to predict where cancer metastasis will occur. The objective of our study is to characterize sizes of the microvasculature where a deformable circulating cell (DCC) would firmly adhere or roll over the wall, as well as to identify the parameters that facilitate such firm adherence and underlying mechanisms driving the adhesive interactions. We will model the blood flow distribution in 3D models of the vasculature. A three-dimensional model of DCCs is applied to simulate the fluid-structure interaction between the DCC and surrounding fluid. A dynamic adhesion model, where an adhesion molecule is modeled as a spring, is employed to represent the stochastic receptor-ligand interactions using kinetic rate expressions.
Tasks and Responsibilites
The student is expected to work with an open source code and develop it to model the adhesion of cancer cells to the vessel wall. They will quantify the hemodynamic parameters (blood velocity, pressure, wall shear stress, and vorticity) through the vasculature.
The student is expected to write short Matlab codes and perform required post-processing analysis of the results.
The student is expected to participate in regular weekly meetings where challenges and progressions will be discussed in detail. Student is expected to prepare a written report about the project and present it to the mentor at the end of his project.
Previous background of the adviser in this regard (one in the PLOS ONE, one in AJP- Heart and Circulatory, and several other journal articles and conference papers) has built a base which will be further developed in this work.