Particle motion in unsteady two-dimensional peristaltic flow with application to the ureter

Numerical analysis of an obstacle motion in the human ureter using the dynamic mesh approach

Peristalsis is a common motion in various biological systems, especially the upper urinary tract, where it plays a pivotal role in conveying urine from the kidneys to the bladder. Using computational fluid dynamics, this study aims to investigate the effect of various peristaltic parameters on the motion of an obstacle through a two-dimensional ureter. Methodologically, Incompressible Navier-Stokes equations were utilized as the fluid domain's governing equations, and the Dynamic Mesh method (DM) was employed to simulate the peristaltic and obstacle motion. The peristaltic motion was modeled by a sinusoidal contraction wave propagating alongside the ureter at the physiological speed, and the motion of the obstruction through the ureter, which is caused by the fluid forces applied on its surface, was explored using the equation of Newton's second law. Various test cases of different shapes and sizes were supposed as kidney stones to understand the influence of the peristalsis properties on the stone removal process. The results show that the motion of the kidney stone is highly influenced by the gradient pressure force applied to its surface in the fluid domain. Moreover, investigating the effects of the peristaltic physical properties on the obstacle's motion indicates that the stone's motion is dependent on these parameters. Furthermore, this analysis provides insight into the peristaltic motion effects, assisting physicians in developing new medicines to facilitate the kidney stone removal process based on its shape and size.

Modeling virus transport and dynamics in viscous flow medium

In this paper, we developed a mathematical model to simulate virus transport through a viscous background flow driven by the natural pumping mechanism. Two types of respiratory pathogens viruses (SARS-Cov-2 and Influenza-A) are considered in this model. The Eulerian-Lagrangian approach is adopted to examine the virus spread in axial and transverse directions. The Basset-Boussinesq-Oseen equation is considered to study the effects of gravity, virtual mass, Basset force, and drag forces on the viruses transport velocity. The results indicate that forces acting on the spherical and non-spherical particles during the motion play a significant role in the transmission process of the viruses. It is observed that high viscosity is responsible for slowing the virus transport dynamics. Small sizes of viruses are found to be highly dangerous and propagate rapidly through the blood vessels. Furthermore, the present mathematical model can help to better understand the viruses spread dynamics in a blood flow.

Progression of blood-borne viruses through bloodstream: A comparative mathematical study

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES

Blood-borne pathogens are contagious microorganisms that can cause life-threatening illnesses, and are found in human blood. It is crucial to examine how these viruses spread through blood flow in the blood vessel. Keeping that in view, this study aims to determine how blood viscosity, and diameter of the viruses can affect the virus transmission through the blood flow in the blood vessel. A comparative study of bloodborne viruses (BBVs) such as HIV, Hepatitis B, and C, has been addressed in the present model. A couple stress fluid model is used to represent blood as a carrying medium for virus transmission. The Basset-Boussinesq-Oseen equation is taken into account for the simulation of virus transmission.

METHODS

An analytical approach to derive the exact solutions under the assumption of long wavelength and low Reynolds number approximations is employed. For the computation of the results, a segment (wavelength) of blood vessels about 120 mm with wave velocities in the range of 49 - 190 mm/sec are considered, where the diameter of BBVs ranges from 40-120 nm. The viscosity of the blood varies from 3.5-5.5 × 10^-3Ns/m² which affect the virion motion having a density range 1.03 - 1. 25 g/m³.

RESULTS

It shows that the Hepatitis B virus is more harmful than other blood-borne viruses considered in the analysis. Patients with high blood pressure are highly susceptible for transmission of BBVs.

CONCLUSIONS

The present fluid dynamics approach for virus spread through blood flow can be helpful in understanding the dynamics of virus propagation inside the human circulatory system.

Changing Flows Balance Nutrient Absorption and Bacterial Growth along the Gut

Small intestine motility and its ensuing flow of luminal content impact both nutrient absorption and bacterial growth. To explore this interdependence we introduce a biophysical description of intestinal flow and absorption. Rooted in observations of mice we identify the average flow velocity as the key control of absorption efficiency and bacterial growth, independent of the exact contraction pattern. We uncover self-regulation of contraction and flow in response to nutrients and bacterial levels to promote efficient absorption while restraining detrimental bacterial overgrowth.

Propagation of H1N1 virus through saliva movement in oesophagus: a mathematical model

H1N1 (Swine flu) is caused by the influenza A virus which belongs to the Orthomyxoviridae family. Influenza A is very harmful to the elderly, and people with chronic respiratory disease and cardiovascular disease. Therefore, it is essential to analyse the behaviour of virus transmission through the saliva movement in oesophagus. A mathematical paradigm is developed to study the saliva movement under the applications of transverse magnetic field. Jeffrey fluid model is considered for saliva to show the viscoelastic nature. The flow nature is considered creeping and assumptions of long wavelength and low Reynolds number are adopted for analytical solutions. The Basset-Boussinesq-Oseen equation is employed to understand the propagation of H1N1 virus through saliva under the effect of applicable forces such as gravity, virtual mass, basset force, and drag forces. The suitable data for saliva, oesophagus and H1N1 virus are taken from the existing literature for simulation of the results using MATLAB software. From the graphical results, it is observed that the susceptibility to viral infections is less because the magnetic field reduces the motion of the virus particle. Further, the chances of infections in males are more as compared to females and children due to variation in viscosity of saliva. Such findings provide an understanding of the mechanics of the virus floating through the saliva (viscoelastic fluids) in the oesophagus.

Quantifying particle adhesion to the ureteral walls during peristaltic flow

In this paper, we investigate the motion of particle(s) under the action of peristaltic flow. The particle trajectories are simulated by considering sinusoidal peristaltic waves. The fluid flow is governed by a two-dimensional Navier-Stokes equation, whereas for the particle dynamics we use the Basset-Boussinesq-Oseen (BBO) equation. The particle trajectories computed for different characteristic peristaltic flows, that is, trapping flow, augmented flow, and backward flow, show that the net horizontal particle displacement is largest for the augmented flow case. In general, the particle motion depends on its location in the peristaltic channel because of the wall curvature, which directly affects the flow velocities. The reported results for a cluster of particles show that whilst a fraction of particles form a group and propagate along the wave, some particles are left behind that deposit on the channel wall. In many biological processes it is desirable to know the number of particles that accumulate on the channel walls. In the present work, we propose empirical relations which can be used to calculate particle adhesion as a function of time.

Signalling molecule transport analysis in lacunar-canalicular system

Mechanical loading-induced fluid flow in lacunar-canalicular space (LCS) of bone excites osteocyte cells to release signalling molecules which initiate osteo-activities. Theoretical models considered canaliculi as a uniform and symmetrical space/channel in bone. However, experimental studies reported that canalicular walls are irregular and curvy resulting in inhomogeneous fluid motion which may influence the molecular transport. Therefore, a new mathematical model of LCS with curvy canalicular walls is developed to characterize cantilever bending-induced canalicular flow behaviour in terms of pore-pressure, fluid velocity, and streamlines. The model also analyses the mobility of signalling molecules involved in bone mechanotransduction as a function of loading frequency and permeability of LCS. Inhomogeneous flow is observed at higher loading frequency which amplifies mechanotransduction; nevertheless, it also promotes trapping of signalling molecules. The effects of shape and size of signalling molecules on transport behaviour are also studied. Trivially, signalling molecules larger in size and weight move slower as compared to molecules small in size and weight which validates the findings of the present study. The outcomes will ultimately be useful in designing better biomechanical exercise in combination with pharmaceutical agents to improve the bone health.

Bacterial Cohesion Predicts Spatial Distribution in the Larval Zebrafish Intestine

Are there general biophysical relationships governing the spatial organization of the gut microbiome? Despite growing realization that spatial structure is important for population stability, interbacterial competition, and host functions, it is unclear in any animal gut whether such structure is subject to predictive, unifying rules or if it results from contextual, species-specific behaviors. To explore this, we used light sheet fluorescence microscopy to conduct a high-resolution comparative study of bacterial distribution patterns throughout the entire intestinal volume of live, larval zebrafish. Fluorescently tagged strains of seven bacterial symbionts, representing six different species native to zebrafish, were each separately monoassociated with animals that had been raised initially germ-free. The strains showed large differences in both cohesion-the degree to which they auto-aggregate-and spatial distribution. We uncovered a striking correlation between each strain's mean position and its cohesion, whether quantified as the fraction of cells existing as planktonic individuals, the average aggregate size, or the total number of aggregates. Moreover, these correlations held within species as well; aggregates of different sizes localized as predicted from the pan-species observations. Together, our findings indicate that bacteria within the zebrafish intestine are subject to generic processes that organize populations by their cohesive properties. The likely drivers of this relationship-peristaltic fluid flow, tubular anatomy, and bacterial growth and aggregation kinetics-are common throughout animals. We therefore suggest that the framework introduced here of biophysical links between bacterial cohesion and spatial organization should be useful for directing explorations in other host-microbe systems, formulating detailed models that can quantitatively map onto experimental data, and developing new tools that manipulate cohesion to engineer microbiome function.

PERISTALTIC TRANSPORT OF A COUPLE STRESS FLUID: SOME APPLICATIONS TO HEMODYNAMICS

The paper deals with a theoretical investigation of the peristaltic transport of a couple stress fluid in a porous channel. The study is motivated toward investigating the physiological flow of blood in the micro-circulatory system, by taking account of the particle size effect. The velocity, pressure gradient, stream function, and frictional force of blood are investigated, when the Reynolds number is small and the wavelength is large, by using appropriate analytical and numerical methods. Effects of different physical parameters reflecting porosity, Darcy number, couple stress parameter, as well as amplitude ratio on velocity profiles, pumping action and frictional force, streamlines pattern, and trapping of blood are studied with particular emphasis. The computational results are presented in graphical form. The results are found to be in good agreement with those reported by Shapiro et al.52 that was carried out for a non-porous channel without consideration of couple stress effect. The present study puts forward an important observation that for peristaltic transport of a couple stress fluid during free pumping, flow reversal can be considerably controlled by suitably adjusting the couple stress effect of the fluid/Darcy permeability of the channel. It is also possible to avoid the occurrence of trapping, by reducing the permeability.

The influence of pH on the specific adhesion of P piliated Escherichia coli

Adhesion to host tissues is an initiating step in a majority of bacterial infections. In the case of Gram-negative bacteria this adhesion is often mediated by a specific interaction between an adhesin, positioned at the distal end of bacterial pili, and its receptor on the surface of the host tissue. Furthermore, the rod of the pilus, and particularly its biomechanical properties, is believed to be crucial for the ability of bacteria to withstand external forces caused by, for example, (in the case of urinary tract infections) urinary rinsing flows by redistributing the force to several pili. In this work, the adhesion properties of P-piliated E. coli and their dependence of pH have been investigated in a broad pH range by both the surface plasmon resonance technique and force measuring optical tweezers. We demonstrate that P piliated bacteria have an adhesion ability throughout the entire physiologically relevant pH range (pH 4.5 - 8). We also show that pH has a higher impact on the binding rate than on the binding stability or the biomechanical properties of pili; the binding rate was found to have a maximum around pH 5 while the binding stability was found to have a broader distribution over pH and be significant over the entire physiologically relevant pH range. Force measurements on a single organelle level show that the biomechanical properties of P pili are not significantly affected by pH.

Phase transition in peristaltic transport of frictionless granular particles

Flows of dissipative particles driven by the peristaltic motion of a tube are numerically studied. A transition from a slow "unjammed" flow to a fast "jammed" flow is found through the observation of the flow rate at a critical width of the bottleneck of a peristaltic tube. It is also found that the average and fluctuation of the transition time, and the peak value of the second moment of the flow rate exhibit power-law divergence near the critical point and that these variables satisfy scaling relationships near the critical point. The dependence of the critical width and exponents on the peristaltic speed and the density is also discussed.

Self-sustained peristaltic waves: explicit asymptotic solutions

A simple nonlinear model for the coupled problem of fluid flow and contractile wall deformation is proposed to describe peristalsis. In the context of the model the ability of a transporting system to perform autonomous peristaltic pumping is interpreted as the ability to propagate sustained waves of wall deformation. Piecewise-linear approximations of nonlinear functions are used to analytically demonstrate the existence of traveling-wave solutions. Explicit formulas are derived which relate the speed of self-sustained peristaltic waves to the rheological properties of the transporting vessel and the transported fluid. The results may contribute to the development of diagnostic and therapeutic procedures for cases of peristaltic motility disorders.