A5034840274- Bone Tissue Engineering Materials
- Bone health and osteoporosis research
- Calcium Carbonate Crystallization and Inhibition
- Bone Metabolism and Diseases
- Collagen: Extraction and Characterization
- Silk-based biomaterials and applications
- Bone and Dental Protein Studies
- Osteoarthritis Treatment and Mechanisms
- Cellular Mechanics and Interactions
- Force Microscopy Techniques and Applications
- Laser Applications in Dentistry and Medicine
- High Temperature Alloys and Creep
- Dental materials and restorations
- Marine Biology and Environmental Chemistry
- Tendon Structure and Treatment
- Radiomics and Machine Learning in Medical Imaging
- Elasticity and Material Modeling
- Orthopaedic implants and arthroplasty
- Metal and Thin Film Mechanics
- Vitamin D Research Studies
- Microstructure and mechanical properties
- Connective tissue disorders research
- Polymer Surface Interaction Studies
- Medical Imaging and Analysis
- nanoparticles nucleation surface interactions
Queen Mary University of London
2016-2025
Queen Mary Hospital
2022
Institute for In Vitro Sciences
2021
Predictive Science (United States)
2021
Southwest Jiaotong University
2021
Transnational Press London
2015-2017
Bioengineering Center
2017
Mile End Hospital
2015
Max Planck Institute of Colloids and Interfaces
2004-2012
Max Planck Society
2004-2012
Bone is a hierarchically structured material with remarkable mechanical performance which may serve as model for the development of biomimetic materials. Understanding its properties essential assessment diseases such osteoporosis. This will lead to critical evaluation current therapies and aid in their more targeted development. While full hierarchical structure bone extremely complex variable, basic building block, mineralized collagen fibril, rather universal. Due progress experimental...
In biomineralized tissues such as bone, the recurring structural motif at supramolecular level is an anisotropic stiff inorganic component reinforcing soft organic matrix. The high toughness and defect tolerance of natural composites believed to arise from these nanometer scale motifs. Specifically, load transfer in bone has been proposed occur by a tensile strains between (mineral apatite) particles via shearing intervening (collagen) layers. This raises question how what extent do mineral...
Deformation mechanisms in bone matrix at the nanoscale control its exceptional mechanical properties, but detailed nature of these processes is as yet unknown. In situ tensile testing with synchrotron X-ray scattering allowed us to study directly and quantitatively deformation nanometer level. We find that not homogeneous distributed between a fibrils shearing interfibrillar them.
A facile urea-assisted hydrothermal synthesis and systematic characterization of hydroxyapatite (HA) with calcium nitrate tetrahydrate diammonium hydrogen phosphate as precursors are reported. The advantage the proposed technique over previously reported synthetic approaches is simple but precise control HA crystals morphology, which achieved by employing an intensive, stepwise, slow thermal decomposition urea well varying initial concentrations starting reagents. Whereas plate-, hexagonal...
Many biological materials, such as glass sponges, nacre or bone have a lamellar structure. While it is well known that weak interfaces between lamellae may deflect cracks and, thus, increase the toughness, we analyze influence of periodic variations in Young's modulus. Even without interfaces, ratio 5 maximum and minimum modulus can be sufficient to stop crack vicinity stiffness minimum.
The secondary osteon — a fundamental building block in compact bone is multilayered cylindrical structure of mineralized collagen fibrils arranged around blood vessel. Functionally, the must be adapted to vivo mechanical stresses at level its microstructure. However, questions remain about precise mechanism by which this achieved. By application scanning x-ray diffraction with micron-sized synchrotron beam, along measurements local mineral crystallographic axis direction, we reconstruct...
Bone and nacre are the most-known biological hard tissues to materials researchers. Although highly mineralized, both bone amazingly tough exhibit remarkable inelasticity, properties that still beyond reach of many modern ceramic materials. Very interestingly, two seem have adopted totally different structural strategies for achieving mechanical robustness. Starting from a true nanocomposite mineralized collagen fibril following up seven levels hierarchical organization, is built on...
Research on the deformation mechanisms of tendons and wood has shown that these tissues deform mostly by shearing a soft matrix between stiff fibres. For this type composite to be both strong tough, tight binding fibres is required. Recent results suggest Nature may have evolved special interface polymers, capable forming matrix. Proteoglycans could play role in collagen fibrils with their protein-like ends an aqueous sugar-like ends. Hemicelluloses similar plant cell wall, as they are...
Biological tissues are exposed to X-rays in medical applications (such as diagnosis and radiotherapy) research studies (for example microcomputed X-ray tomography: microCT). Radiotherapy may deliver doses up 50Gy both tumour healthy tissues, resulting undesirable clinical side effects which can compromise quality of life. Whilst cellular responses relatively well-characterised, X-ray-induced structural damage the extracellular matrix (ECM) is poorly understood. This study tests hypotheses...
Synthetic nacre morphologically indistinguishable from the natural archetype was synthesized with amorphous calcium carbonate precursors by confinement in scaffold of original insoluble matrix. The were generated using a synthetic polyelectrolyte highlighting physicochemical aspects biomineralization.
Abstract Bone is mechanically and structurally anisotropic with oriented collagen fibrils nanometer‐sized mineral particles aggregating into lamellar or woven bone.[1] Direct measurements of mechanical properties sublamellar tissue constituents are complicated by the existence an intrinsic hierarchical architecture. Methods such as nanoindentation provide insight effective modulus values; however, bulk material cannot sufficiently be characterized since represent near‐surface volumes...
Significance Collagen plays crucial biomechanical roles in a wide array of animal tissues, but its mechanical properties remain largely static over short timescales. However, echinoderms (sea cucumbers, starfish) are striking exceptions to this rule, having “mutable collagenous tissue” with changeable properties, enabling complex locomotion, postural maintenance, defense, and reproductive strategies. Using high-resolution X-ray probe that measures how the building blocks—fibrils—of...
ObjectiveCartilage health is maintained in response to a range of mechanical stimuli including compressive, shear and tensile strains associated alterations osmolality. The osmotic-sensitive ion channel Transient Receptor Potential Vanilloid 4 (TRPV4) required for mechanotransduction. Mechanical inhibit interleukin-1β (IL-1β) mediated inflammatory signalling, however the mechanism unclear. This study aims clarify role TRPV4 this response.DesignTRPV4 activity was modulated glycogen synthase...
The molecular mechanisms for plastic deformation of bone tissue are not well understood. We analysed temperature and strain-rate dependence the tensile behaviour in fibrolamellar bone, using a technique originally developed studying metals. show that, beyond elastic regime, is highly sensitive, with an activation volume ca 0.6 nm 3 . find energy 1.1 eV associated basic step involved at level. This much higher than hydrogen bonds, but it lower required breaking covalent bonds inside collagen...