The work to be performed will establish a multi-processor computing cluster to (i) facilitate computational study of cell adhesion under flow and (ii) introduce a bioinformatics practicum into an existing undergraduate numerical methods course in biomedical engineering. The work is based on a rigorous numerical simulation that successfully models the adhesion of cells to surfaces or other cells in a general flow field by fusing stochastic receptor binding with a deterministic boundary elements flow calculation. This prior simulation approach will now be extended to model events in realistic pathological geometries such as arterial bifurcations and stenosed vessels. By focusing on the interplay between fluid mechanics and receptor-ligand adhesive recognition, predictive models of monocyte accumulation in atherosclerosis and platelet deposition in acute thrombosis will be developed. Predictions will then be tested by performing cell adhesion experiments in novel flow chambers that emulate pathological geometries. The success of this project will elucidate the basic physical mechanisms of blood cell adhesion in cardiovascular disease, while developing computational models that can ultimately be used to aid diagnosis and evaluate new molecular and surgical therapies. The proposed multi-processor computing cluster will enhance the computational infrastructure. The undergraduate bioinformatics practicum that also shares this cluster with the research activities will address a lack of bioinformatics training in biomedical engineering programs nationwide by developing a new pedagogical approach and then disseminating assessments. Members of the Functional Genomics Center and the Department of Computer Science at the University of Rochester will give guest lectures to expose students to current research in the field. Additionally, pre-college students from the Career Internship Program of the Pittsford Central School District (Pittsford, NY) will actively participate in the analysis of cell adhesion experiments.
