Abarca-Ortega, AAAbarca-OrtegaAbarca-Ortega, AldoAldoAbarca-OrtegaAlvarez-Lopez, AroaAroaAlvarez-LopezCastro-Dominguez, CristinaCristinaCastro-DominguezDiaz-Alcaraz, CristinaCristinaDiaz-AlcarazGarvia-Rodriguez, MariaMariaGarvia-RodriguezGonzalez-Bermudez, BlancaBlancaGonzalez-BermudezGuinea, Gustavo, VGustavo, VGuineaPlaza, Gustavo R.Gustavo R.Plaza2025-04-232025-04-232024https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijmecsci.2024.108979https://sic.vriic.usach.cl/handle/usach/4267Mechanical characterization of suspended cells by constriction-based microfluidic devices has currently various limitations related to the available analysis models. In this work, we propose a new methodology to analyze the experiments. This approach is based on numerical simulations to describe fluid forces and cell deformation and on an extension of the quasi-linear viscoelasticity theory developed by Fung. The cells are considered visco-hyperelastic, homogeneous, and isotropic. The approach allows for assessing the mechanical parameters of individual cells, which is not possible using previous approaches, notably increasing the power of the constriction-based microfluidic technique. A practical procedure to compute mechanical parameters is proposed and demonstrated by analyzing experiments with suspended cells. The methodology developed in this work provides a convenient tool to overcome critical limitations of the state of the art and to leverage the potential of these microfluidic devices. © 2024 The Authorsen-USCell MechanicsMechanical propertiesMechanobiologyMicrofluidicsSingle-cell analysis