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. 2020 Mar 31;9:F1000 Faculty Rev-222. [Version 1] doi: 10.12688/f1000research.20576.1

Figure 2. Spatial heterogeneity increases stress and strain due to alveolar interdependence.

Figure 2.

In the isolated perfused rat lung, confocal microscopy with optical sections 2 µm thick permits direct visualization of alveoli. Top: adjacent alveoli share a common septum and are mechanically interdependent. In normal conformation, strain is minimized across neighboring air-filled alveoli. Bottom: in a single-alveolus model of pulmonary edema, the effects on local strain distribution of heterogeneous parenchymal consolidation and flooding can be appreciated. The liquid-filled alveolus shrinks owing to micromechanical effects of meniscus formation. As a result, the adjacent air-filled alveolus bulges and overdistends. This figure was reprinted with permission of the American Thoracic Society. Copyright © 2020 American Thoracic Society. Cite: Perlman CE, Lederer DJ, Bhattacharya J. 2011. Micromechanics of alveolar edema. Am J Respir Cell Mol Biol, 44(1), 34–9. The American Journal of Respiratory Cell and Molecular Biology is an official journal of the American Thoracic Society 40.