Current research strives to replicate the process of shear and tensile stress being added to these endothelial cells and analyze the data to try and find answers as to why cardiovascular diseases occur. The device in figure 1 is used to shear the endothelial cells that are cultured on the plates on the left in order to mimic real-life situations. Researchers then examine the results of the stress applied.

BioFlex Culture Plates(2)

In a recent study, researchers drafted a programmable shearing-stretching device that can apply tensile strain and shear stress simultaneously to Endothelial cells in vitro. The device is an ” integrated piston-driven vacuum system and a cone-and-plate shearing device and was able to apply physiologically relevant dynamic shear stress and tensile strain to cultured ECs on flexible membranes”[5]. According to this study, this product was able to simulate the two mechanical loads applied to endothelial cells and observe cell changes like cell elongation and alignment. 

Despite the strength of the current study’s methods, the system utilized is a closed system. This means that cell activation products, such as cytokines, will remain in the system and ultimately lead to unwanted results. Without an open system, this method of observation is limited to a closed system that does not mimic our current cardiovascular system.