Multiscale modelling of cerebrovascular injury reveals the role of vascular anatomy and parenchymal shear stresses

Siamak Farajzadeh Khosroshahi, Xianzhen Yin, Cornelius K. Donat, Aisling McGarry, Maria Yanez Lopez, Nicoleta Baxan, David Sharp, Magdalena Sastre, Mazdak Ghajari

Scientific Reports, 2021

Abstract

Neurovascular injury is often observed in traumatic brain injury (TBI). However, the relationship between mechanical forces and vascular injury is still unclear. A key question is whether the complex anatomy of vasculature plays a role in increasing forces in cerebral vessels and producing damage. We developed a high-fidelity multiscale finite element model of the rat brain featuring a detailed definition of the angioarchitecture. Controlled cortical impacts were performed experimentally and in-silico. The model was able to predict the pattern of blood-brain barrier damage. We found strong correlation between the area of fibrinogen extravasation and the brain area where axial strain in vessels exceeds 0.14. Our results showed that adjacent vessels can sustain profoundly different axial stresses depending on their alignment with the principal direction of stress in parenchyma, with a better alignment leading to larger stresses in vessels. We also found a strong correlation between axial stress in vessels and the shearing component of the stress wave in parenchyma. Our multiscale computational approach explains the unrecognised role of the vascular anatomy and shear stresses in…

Cite as (BibTeX)

@article{khosroshahi-2021-multiscale-modelling-of-cerebrovascular,
  title={Multiscale modelling of cerebrovascular injury reveals the role of vascular anatomy and parenchymal shear stresses},
  author={Siamak Farajzadeh Khosroshahi and Xianzhen Yin and Cornelius K. Donat and Aisling McGarry and Maria Yanez Lopez and Nicoleta Baxan and David Sharp and Magdalena Sastre and Mazdak Ghajari},
  journal={Scientific Reports},
  year={2021},
  doi={10.1038/s41598-021-92371-0}
}