Focused ultrasound setup for the study of acoustic radiation force induced biological effects in cells

Selective application of shear forces on cells triggers stimulatory biological effects resulting in the manipulation of the cellular mechano-environment and the alteration of cell behavior. The acoustic radiation force (ARF) induced by focused ultrasound (FUS) can generate shear forces as in shear wave elastography imaging. The commonly used setups for in-vitro studies of ultrasound-induced mechanotransduction include well plates in which the cells are exposed to unwanted effects like standing waves from the plastic-fluid interface reflections. These well plates lead to additional transmission losses. To effectively study the biological responses in cells due to ARF induced shear stress; an in-vitro FUS cell stimulation setup which eliminates the aforementioned effects is described.