A Cellular Automaton-Based Computational Model for Fluid Shear Stress-Induced Differentiation and Migration of Osteoprogenitor Cells in a Microfluidic Chip

This study evaluates the mechanobiological responses of MC3T3-E1 cells to fluid shear stress utilizing a coupled CFD-CPM mesoscale framework. Computational fluid dynamics was utilized to calculate the distribution of fluid shear stress within the culture chamber, which was subsequently mapped onto a discrete system of lattices. The cellular Potts model was employed to simulate behaviors of the cells governed by rules for proliferation, migration, contact inhibition, and osteogenic differentiation. To accurately reflect developmental stages, the computational workflow dictated that the cells complete the phase of growth prior to the initiation of differentiation. Evaluations demonstrated that the culture region formed a relatively uniform plateau of shear stress. Within an optimal range, fluid shear stress accelerates the transition of these cells into mature osteoblasts. Furthermore, staining for alkaline phosphatase revealed responses of osteogenic differentiation strictly correlated with the local distribution of fluid shear stress. Ultimately, this study establishes a visualized framework of mesoscale modeling to analyze the collective behavior of osteoblasts under mechanical stimulation in microfluidic environments, demonstrating the feasibility of predicting subsequent extracellular matrix mineralization and providing valuable insights into the dynamic evolution of bone remodeling.