Biomekaanisiin

Biomekaanisiin refers to a multidisciplinary concept and field of study that centers on the mechanics of living systems. It combines principles from mechanics, biology, and engineering to analyze how forces, deformations, and material properties govern the structure and function of biological matter, from cells and tissues to whole organisms.

The scope includes the mechanical properties of biological materials, tissue and joint dynamics, and mechanotransduction, the process by which cells convert mechanical stimuli into biochemical signals. It also addresses modeling and simulation of mechanical behavior across scales, and the development of experimental techniques to measure forces, stiffness, and deformations in living samples.

Methods commonly used in biomekaanisiin include traction force microscopy, atomic force microscopy, micropipette aspiration, and multi-physics imaging under load. Computational approaches feature finite element analysis, multiscale modeling, and data-driven methods to connect molecular interactions to organ-level mechanics.

Applications span medicine, rehabilitation, and bioengineering. They support prosthetics design, surgical planning, and the engineering of tissue constructs. In sports science, the framework helps analyze performance and reduce injury risk. In robotics, biomekaanisiin-informed principles feed into soft robotics and bio-inspired materials.

The term is used in Finnish-language literature to denote this integrated study of mechanics in biology; while overlapping with biomechanics and mechanobiology, biomekaanisiin emphasizes cross-disciplinary synthesis and practical applications. Challenges include methodological standardization, reproducibility, and translating findings to clinical settings.