A numerical investigation on the Magnetophoretic-guided stem cells delivery in a bend blood vessel

Targeted cell delivery via magnetic field has presented a potential method to enhance cell targeting and retention efficiency for cell-based therapeutics. In this study, for the first time, a three-dimensional computational fluid dynamic (CFD) model was established in ANSYS Fluent to predict the effect of an external magnetic field on delivery of the cells, labeled with magnetic nanoparticles, through a bend vessel. To track the cells through the vessel in the presence of the magnetic field, an Eulerian-Lagrangian method with one-way coupling was employed. The magnetic force induced to each cell was modeled using User-Defined Function (UDF). The effect of the magnetic field strength, the concentration of magnetic nanoparticles in each cell, Reynolds number, curvature coefficient and the current wire position on cell delivery efficiency were studied. In addition, to validate the numerical solution, an analytical analysis was presented to determine the cell path in a micochannel, in the presence of the magnetic field induced by the current wire. The numerical results reveal that the efficiency of cell delivery is improved by increasing the magnetic strength and the concentration of cellular magnetic nanoparticles. Furthermore, in a blood vessel with high Reynolds number and low curvature coefficient, targeted cell delivery via magnetic field has low capture efficiency.