No abstract

Many native and bioengineered soft tissues are composed of two or more types of biopolymer networks that mechanically define and support the material [1]. Modeling the response of multi-network soft tissues to mechanical loading can be difficult due to the heterogeneous nature of these materials and the large strains (>1) involved. As tissues deform, the different biopolymer networks interact with one another and determine the overall stress-strain outcome for the tissue. Capturing this interaction could help improve the accuracy of a computer model to simulate the microscale behavior of soft tissues under load. We have developed a two-network model to reflect interactions between collagen and fibrin biopolymer networks loaded in uniaxial extension. The model can help improve our understanding of native and engineered tissue mechanics.