Multidirectional measures of shear modulus in skeletal muscle

Abstract

The material properties of muscle play a central role in how muscle resists joint motion, transmits forces internally, and repairs itself. While many studies have evaluated muscle’s tensile material properties, few have investigated muscle’s shear properties. None of which have taken into account muscle’s anisotropic structure or investigated how different muscle architecture affect muscle’s shear properties. The objective of this study was to quantify the shear moduli of skeletal muscle in three orientations relevant to the function of whole muscle. We collected data from the extensor digitorum longus, tibialis anterior, and soleus harvested from both hindlimbs of 12 rats. These muscles were chosen to further evaluate the consistency of shear moduli across muscles with different architectures. We calculated the shear modulus in three orientations: parallel, perpendicular, and across with respect to muscle fiber alignment; while the muscle was subjected to increasing shear strain. For all muscles and orientations, the shear modulus increased with increasing strain. The shear modulus measured perpendicular to fibers was greater than in any other orientation. Despite architectural differences between muscles, we did not find a significant effect of muscle type on shear modulus. Our results show that in rat, muscles’ shear moduli vary with respect to fiber orientation and are not influenced by architectural differences in muscles.