This project is designed to explore and quantitate the complex fluid dynamic forces governing global pulmonary transport and local cellular mechanical strain. From experimental work we have learned that the geometric design of the lung induces specific flow effects such as asymmetric flow distribution, chaotic mixing and variable pressure zones. Until recently the scientific community has considered the pulmonary airways and vascular passive conduits to a relatively simple gas exchange sheet. In the cells comprising these branching networks however, evidence now points to an active participation in local flow regulation as well as mechanical signal transcription (cellular release of secondary messengers, altered ion fluxes, cytoskeletal changes and transcription bursts). The applied forces and cellular strains are unknown and imposed within bifurcations we have initiated a large scale transfer of aeronautic computational fluid dynamic and supercomputer techniques to the biological sciences. In conjunction with the NSF sponsored ERC for Computational Field Simulation this project will initiate an exploration of the fluid dynamic forces within small airways. This region has been chosen for initial exploration because pre- existing data is available to cross check early model development.
