TY - JOUR
T1 - Computational imaging of aortic vasa vasorum and neovascularization in rabbits using contrast-enhanced intravascular ultrasound
T2 - Association with histological analysis
AU - Vavuranakis, Manolis
AU - Papaioannou, Theodore G.
AU - Vrachatis, Dimitrios
AU - Katsimboulas, Michael
AU - Sanidas, Elias A.
AU - Vaina, Sophia
AU - Agrogiannis, George
AU - Patsouris, Efstratios
AU - Kakadiaris, Ioannis
AU - Stefanadis, Christodoulos
AU - Tousoulis, Dimitrios
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2018 by Turkish Society of Cardiology.
PY - 2018/8
Y1 - 2018/8
N2 - Objective: Neoangiogenesis is pathophysiologically related to atherosclerotic plaque growth and vulnerability. We examined the in vivo performance of a computational method using contrast-enhanced intravascular ultrasound (CE-IVUS) to detect and quantify aortic wall neovascularization in rabbits. We also compared these findings with histological data. Methods: Nine rabbits were fed with a hyperlipidemic diet. IVUS image sequences were continuously recorded before and after the injection of a contrast agent. Mean enhancement of intensity of a region of interest (MEIR) was calculated using differential imaging algorithm. The percent difference of MEIR before and after the injection of microbubbles (d_MEIR) was used as an index of the density of plaque or/and adventitial neovascularization. Aortic segments were excised for histological analysis. Results: CE-IVUS and histological analysis were performed in 11 arterial segments. MEIR was significantly increased (~20%) after microbubble injection (from 8.1±0.9 to 9.7±1.8, p=0.016). Segments with increased VV/neovessels in the tunica adventitia (histological scores 2 and 3) had significantly higher d_MEIR compared with segments with low presence of VV/neovessels (score 1); 40.5±22.9 vs. 8±14.6, p=0.024, respectively. Conclusion: It is possible to detect VV or neovessels in vivo using computational analysis of CE-IVUS images, which is in agreement with histological data. These findings may have critical implications on vulnerable plaque assessment and risk stratification.
AB - Objective: Neoangiogenesis is pathophysiologically related to atherosclerotic plaque growth and vulnerability. We examined the in vivo performance of a computational method using contrast-enhanced intravascular ultrasound (CE-IVUS) to detect and quantify aortic wall neovascularization in rabbits. We also compared these findings with histological data. Methods: Nine rabbits were fed with a hyperlipidemic diet. IVUS image sequences were continuously recorded before and after the injection of a contrast agent. Mean enhancement of intensity of a region of interest (MEIR) was calculated using differential imaging algorithm. The percent difference of MEIR before and after the injection of microbubbles (d_MEIR) was used as an index of the density of plaque or/and adventitial neovascularization. Aortic segments were excised for histological analysis. Results: CE-IVUS and histological analysis were performed in 11 arterial segments. MEIR was significantly increased (~20%) after microbubble injection (from 8.1±0.9 to 9.7±1.8, p=0.016). Segments with increased VV/neovessels in the tunica adventitia (histological scores 2 and 3) had significantly higher d_MEIR compared with segments with low presence of VV/neovessels (score 1); 40.5±22.9 vs. 8±14.6, p=0.024, respectively. Conclusion: It is possible to detect VV or neovessels in vivo using computational analysis of CE-IVUS images, which is in agreement with histological data. These findings may have critical implications on vulnerable plaque assessment and risk stratification.
KW - Aorta
KW - Atherosclerosis
KW - Microbubbles
KW - Neoangiogenesis
KW - Vulnerable plaque
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U2 - 10.14744/AnatolJCardiol.2018.35761
DO - 10.14744/AnatolJCardiol.2018.35761
M3 - Article
C2 - 30088486
AN - SCOPUS:85052512825
SN - 2149-2263
VL - 20
SP - 117
EP - 124
JO - Anatolian Journal of Cardiology
JF - Anatolian Journal of Cardiology
IS - 2
ER -