Figure 3. Types of biomechanical modulation achieved with native and engineered in vitro, ex vivo, and in vivo systems.

Engineered scaffolds can model fluid flow, porous environments, fibrosis, and healthy extracellular matrices. Shear stress from turbulent fluid flow impacts endothelial cell susceptibility to atherosclerosis, likely due to trained immunity. Porous scaffolds can provide niches for cellular interaction, differentiation, and drug encapsulation. Fibrotic and native extracellular matrix (ECM), which exhibit differences in elasticity, stiffness, and ligand expression, can be used to measure the effects of mechanotransduction on training in healthy and diseased tissues. This figure was created with BioRender.com.