An investigation on mechanical property differences of arteries based on structure and morphology analysis of collagen fibers

Abstract

ObjectiveThe structure and morphology of collagen fibers greatly influence the mechanical property of arteries. Cyosection immunofluorescence represents a powerful technique for the direct observation of the structure and morphology of the collagen fibers. The objective of this work is to investigate the mechanical property variation of arteries between elderly and young rats, and to get insight of the mechanical property differences based on the structure and morphology of the collagen fibers using cyosection immunofluorescence method.MethodFemoral, iliac, carotid and abdominal arteries were obtained from 4 pairs of healthy Sprague Dawley rats with the maturity of 8 weeks (young) and 8 months (elderly). The mechanical properties of the obtained arteries were investigated based on the cross‐section morphology. The structure and morphology of the collagen fibers were evidently observed using cyosection immunofluorescence method.ResultsThe abdominal artery segments exhibited greater orientation difference between elderly and young groups compared with those of carotid and femoral arteries. It was observed that elderly rats showed thicker and higher content ratio collagen fibers of abdominal aorta compared with young group using cyosection immunofluorescence method. In addition, the abdominal aorta collagen fiber angle frequency distribution in the median layer exhibited a broad peak (young group: 0°–30°; elderly group: 17°–49°, P value<0.05), while it showed more uniform distribution ranging from −90° to 90° in femoral and carotid arteries.ConclusionsThe abdominal artery in elderly rats shows distinguished variation in the mechanical property compared with young rats in terms of the angle distribution and fiber width than those of femoral artery, carotid artery, and iliac artery. Consequently, this finding reveals the morphological growth and aging laws of arteries to understand microstructure‐based constitutive model in the vascular remodeling and disease.Support or Funding InformationThis research is supported in part by the Shenzhen Science and Technology Innovation Institution (China) Grant JCYJ20160427170536358 (Y Huo).This abstract is from the Experimental Biology 2019 Meeting. There is no full text article associated with this abstract published in The FASEB Journal.