NMBL - Neuromuscular Biomechanics Lab

Related Topics

Medical Imaging
3D Muscle Modeling
Musculoskeletal Modeling

Muscle Mechanics, Form, and Function Skeletal muscle has a complex hierarchical organization in which thousands of force-producing muscle fibers are arranged within a connective tissue network. The properties of individual fibers have been studied in isolation over the last four decades. However, how the behaviors of muscle fibers may change once they are arranged within muscle is not well understood.
	By integrating anatomical measurements, imaging techniques, and computational modeling, we are answering basic questions about how muscles fibers sum to produce muscle force. For example, we have combined dynamic imaging and finite-element modeling to understand what features of muscle architecture contribute to nonuniform strains along fascicles in the biceps brachii muscle. We also have used a 3D muscle modeling formulation to analyze how the complex architecture of the rectus femoris (shown on the left) and vastus intermedius muscles affect the muscle fiber behaviors.
Associated Publications Blemker and Delp. "Rectus femoris and vastus intermedius fiber excursions predicted by three-dimensional muscle models." Journal of Biomechanics, 2006. (Download PDF) Blemker and Delp. "Three-dimensional representation of complex muscle architectures and geometries." Annals of Biomedical Engineering, 2005. (Download PDF) Blemker, Pinsky, and Delp. "A 3D model of muscle reveals the causes of nonuniform strains in the biceps brachii." Journal of Biomechanics, 2005. (Download PDF) Pappas, Asakawa, Delp, Zajac, and Drace. Nonuniform shortening the the biceps brachii during elbow flexion. Journal of Applied Physiology, 2002. (Download PDF file) Asakawa, Pappas, Drace, Delp. Architecture of the biceps brachii characterized with ultrasound and MR. International Journal of Mechanics in Medicine and Biology, 2002. (Downloadf PDF file