Figure 1.

Tissue stretcher setup for tensile measurements. The test specimen is mounted between a stationary fixture and a moving grip that can be locked in position until the holding frame is placed in the chamber unit and the needle is hooked into a titanium wire loop. Afterwards, it is precisely moved by a linear step motor and resulting forces are measured by a load cell. Samples can be kept fully viable in a liquid and temperature-controlled environment during the whole experiment. A front glass plate of the incubation chamber allows low-magnification imaging during experiments.