Extended Data Fig. 5: Stress relaxation in matrices with different bundle lengths, LB. and angles, θ.
From: Matrix viscoelasticity promotes liver cancer progression in the pre-cirrhotic liver
a, b. Bundle length distribution with three different values of b1 and b2 for fibril length of 3 μm (a). Stress relaxation without normalization for cases shown in Fig. 3s and a case without bundles (b). c-e. Bundle length distribution with different b1 and b2 (c) and stress relaxation without (d) or with normalization (e) for fibril length of 5 μm. Faster stress relaxation is observed in matrices consisting of smaller bundles. f, g. Stress relaxation without normalization for the cases shown in main Fig. 3r (f) and Fig. 3t (g). In f and g, the length of fibrils is 3 μm. h, i. Stress relaxation in cases with different angles θ for fibrils length of 5 μm. The bundle length was changed by a variation in the two boundaries defining the second binding sites for bundlers, b1 and b2. When these fibrils are connected in parallel (θ = 0°) by bundlers, they create long densely packed bundles. The length of these bundles (LB) is determined by the specific point of attachment between the bundler and the fibrils. In cases where bundlers exclusively attach to the fibril ends, the resulting matrix consists of short bundles. These loosely packed bundles have a length equal to that of the fibrils (3 μm). The shape of these short, loosely arranged bundles varies depending on the angle (θ) between the connected fibrils. Error bands represent mean ± s.d. Data displayed are representatives of 4 independent simulations.
