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Community challenge towards consensus on characterization of biological tissue: C4Bio’s first findings

Famaey, Nele, Fehervary, Heleen, Lafon, Yoann, Akyildiz, Ali, Dreesen, Silke, Bruyère-Garnier, Karine, Allain, Jean-Marc, Alloisio, Marta, Aparici-Gil, Alejandro, Catalano, Chiara, Chassagne, Fanette, Chokhandre, Snehal, Crevits, Kimberly, Crielaard, Hanneke, Cunnane, Eoghan, Cunnane, Connor, Leener, Karen De, Desai, Amisha, Driessen, Rob, Erdemir, Ahmet, Eskandari, Mona, Evans, Sam ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3664-2569, Gasser, Christian, Gebhardt, Marc, Glasmacher, Birgit, Holzapfel, Gerhard A., Isasi, Mikel, Jennings, Louise, Kurz, Sascha, Leal-Marin, Sara, Lecomte, Pauline, Morch, Annie, Mulvihill, John, Nemavhola, Fulufhelo, Pandelani, Thanyani, Pasta, Salvatore, Peña, Estefania, Pierrat, Baptiste, Ploeg, Heidi-Lynn, Polzer, Stanislav, Rausch, Manuel, Schwarz, David, Screen, Hazel, Sherifova, Selda, Sommer, Gerhard, Wang, Shengzhang, Walsh, Darragh, Yadav, Deepesh, Marchal, Thierry and Geris, Liesbet 2026. Community challenge towards consensus on characterization of biological tissue: C4Bio’s first findings. Journal of Biomechanics 194 , 113021. 10.1016/j.jbiomech.2025.113021

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Abstract

This study investigates methodological variability across various expert laboratories worldwide, with regards to characterizing the mechanical properties of biological tissues. Two testing rounds were conducted on the specific use case of uniaxial tensile testing of porcine aorta. In the first round, 24 labs were invited to apply their established methods to assess inter-laboratory variability. This revealed significant methodological diversity and associated variability in the stress–stretch results, underscoring the necessity for a standardized approach. In the second round, a consensus protocol was collaboratively developed and adopted by 19 labs in an attempt to minimize variability. This involved standardized sample preparation and uniformity in testing protocol, including the use of a common cutting and thickness measurement tool. Despite protocol harmonization, significant variability persisted across labs, which could not be solely attributed to inherent biological differences in tissue samples. These results illustrate the challenges in unifying testing methods across different research settings, underlining the necessity for further refinement of testing practices. Enhancing consistency in biomechanical experiments is pivotal when comparing results across studies, as well as when using the resulting material properties for in silico simulations in medical research.

Item Type: Article
Date Type: Publication
Status: Published
Schools: Schools > Engineering
Additional Information: License information from Publisher: LICENSE 1: Title: This article is under embargo with an end date yet to be finalised. RRS applied 19/11/2025 AB
Publisher: Elsevier
ISSN: 0021-9290
Date of First Compliant Deposit: 19 November 2025
Date of Acceptance: 14 October 2025
Last Modified: 20 Nov 2025 10:30
URI: https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/181915

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