Numerical modeling of cellular flow and adhesion in microvessels

Abstract

Adhesion of cells flowing in microvessels to the vessel wall is an important process in hemostasis and immune system, and it also relates to malaria and metastasis. This process may depend on the mechanical property of cells, the size and geometry of vessels, the volume fraction of red blood cells, the shear rate, and the biochemical property of ligand-receptor interactions. We have developed a numerical model of cellular flow in microvessels to clarify the effects of these parameters. A cell is modeled as a liquid drop enclosed by a thin membrane. The finite element method for membrane mechanics is coupled with the lattice Boltzmann method for fluid mechanics. A ligand-receptor interaction model is also coupled with those methods. All the procedures are implemented in GPU computing for accelerating simulations. We simulate flow of leukocytes and circulating tumor cells, and rolling motion of malaria-infected red blood cells in microvessels.