The physics of blood flow gives a clearer view of its physiological role
What makes one prone to heart diseases and joint pain in malaria can be understood by applying basic fluid dynamics to blood flow - the same concept works on water pipes. Unlike environmental or genetic factors associated with the diseases, the flow of fluids is governed by well understood principles. Understanding always does not help treat or prevent the disease but as Enrico Fermi, an Italian american physicist, said , " Whatever nature has in store for mankind, unpleasant as it may be, men must accept, for ingnorance is never better than knowledge."
At the annual meeting of physical society held at Minneapolis in USA, in November 2009 , physicists discussed the application of fluid dynamics in a biological context. They talked about the various facets of blood flow in cardiovascular diseases and infections that target blood cells. For example, red blood cells infected by the malaria parasite are stiffer and stickier that normal ones and flow differently in the vessels.
Blood flow is essential for complex vertebrate nourishment and excretion of by-products of metabolism. Any obstruction of normal blood flow is serious. This is where the principles of fluid dynamics make and entry and take priority in research. For example, a leading cause of heart attacks in older people is atherosclerosis: a reduction in diameter of arteries due to formation of lipid filled plaque that obstructs blood flow. The law that explains this is the Hagen Poiseuille Principle. This relates to the drop in pressure as a fluid flows through a pipe, depending on how wide the pipe is.
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