Multiscale coupling of a Lattice Boltzmann simulation of blood flow to cell- and tissue-level processes: the case of in-stent restenosis

In-stent restenosis, the maladaptive response of a blood vessel to injury caused by the deployment of a stent, is a multiscale system involving a large number of biological and physical processes. We describe a Complex Automata Model for in-stent restenosis, coupling blood flow, drug diffusion, and smooth muscle cell models, all operating on different time scales. The Haemodynamics is handled using a dedicated Lattice Boltzmann simulation. Some details of the coupling of the Lattice Boltzmann simulation to other single scale models are described, together with first simulation results, obtained with a dedicated software environment for Complex Automata simulations.