A Preliminary Model of Gastrointestinal Electromechanical Coupling

• Published in: IEEE transactions on biomedical engineering Vol. 58; no. 12; pp. 3491 - 3495
• Main Authors: Du, Peng, Poh, Yong Cheng, Lim, Jee Lean, Gajendiran, Viveka, OrGrady, Greg, Buist, Martin L., Pullan, Andrew J., Cheng, Leo K.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States IEEE 01.12.2011; The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc. (IEEE)
• Subjects: Adaptation models; Bidomain; Calcium - metabolism; Couplings; Electrophysiological Phenomena; Force; Gastrointestinal Motility - physiology; Gastrointestinal tract; Gastrointestinal Tract - physiology; Humans; interstitial cells of Cajal (ICC); Interstitial Cells of Cajal - physiology; IP networks; Mathematical model; Mechanotransduction, Cellular - physiology; Models, Biological; motility; Muscle, Smooth - physiology; Muscles; Muscular system; slow waves; smooth muscle cells (SMC)
• ISSN: 0018-9294; 1558-2531
• DOI: 10.1109/TBME.2011.2166155

Gastrointestinal (GI) motility is coordinated by several cooperating mechanisms, including electrical slow wave activity, the enteric nervous system (ENS), and other factors. Slow waves generated in interstitial cells of Cajal (ICC) depolarize smooth muscle cells (SMC), generating basic GI contractions. This unique electrical coupling presents an added layer of complexity to GI electromechanical models, and a current barrier to further progress is the lack of a framework for ICC-SMC-contraction coupling. In this study, an initial framework for the electromechanical coupling was developed in a 2-D model. At each solution step, the slow wave propagation was solved first and in the SMC model was related to a -tension-extension relationship to simulate active contraction. With identification of more GI-specific constitutive laws and material parameters, the ICC-SMC-contraction approach may underpin future GI electromechanical models of health and disease states.