Abstract
Cardiac Magnetic Resonance (CMR) is the gold standard for left ventricular (LV) function assessment in small rodents and, though echocardiography (ECHO) has been proposed as an alternative method, LV volumes may be underestimated when marked eccentric remodeling is present. In the present study we described a novel echocardiographic method and we tested the agreement with CMR for LV volumes and ejection fraction calculation in mice with experimental myocardial infarction. Sham-operated and infarcted mice, subjected to Coronary Artery Ligation, underwent ECHO and CMR. Volumes and ejection fraction were calculated by ECHO using a standard Simpson’s modified method (ECHO pLAX) or a method from sequential parasternal short axis (ECHO pSAX) acquired mechanically by translating the probe every 1 mm along the left ventricle. The mean differences ±1.96 standard deviation near to zero suggested close agreement between ECHO pSAX and CMR; contrarily ECHO pLAX agreement with CMR was lower. In addition, ECHO was three times shorter and cheaper (Relative cost difference: pLAX: −66% and pSAX −57%) than CMR. In conclusion, ECHO pSAX is a new, fast, cheap and accurate method for LV function assessment in mice.
Highlights
Wild-type and genetically manipulated mice are widely used in experimental models of myocardial infarction to examine the characteristics of cardiac phenotype, the role of a specific protein, or to test in vivo the efficacy of new therapeutic approaches[1]
Cardiac Magnetic Resonance (CMR) total acquisition time was three-times longer than ECHO (CMR 68 mins vs. ECHO 23 mins, Fig. 3), the duration of the CMR and ECHO exams was similar in sham-operated mice (SHAM) and Coronary Artery Ligation (CAL) mice (CMR: 60 mins and 65 mins, ECHO: 23 mins and 22 mins, respectively)
In mice with CAL, infarct size ranged between 11.4% and 69.1%, LVEDV was 2.2 times greater in CAL compared with SHAM mice (p < 0.05), LVESV resulted 5.0 times greater and Left Ventricular Ejection Fraction (LVEF) was 2.2-fold lower (p < 0.05)
Summary
Wild-type and genetically manipulated mice are widely used in experimental models of myocardial infarction to examine the characteristics of cardiac phenotype, the role of a specific protein, or to test in vivo the efficacy of new therapeutic approaches[1]. Several studies have proposed new ECHO approaches for assessing cardiac function, in order to avoid the limits of the standard left chamber quantification in small rodents[4,7,8,9]. One of these methods is the echocardiographic 3D reconstruction of the left ventricle[4], which has been found to have good agreement with CMR for Left Ventricular Ejection Fraction (LVEF) calculation in several clinical studies[10]. It is not widely used, and is still not available in most of the experimental laboratories
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
