0000000000050286
AUTHOR
Ryan G. Koch
Fiber Micro-Architecture in the Longitudinal-Radial and Circumferential-Radial Planes of Ascending Thoracic Aortic Aneurysm Media.
It was recently demonstrated by our group that the delamination strength of ascending thoracic aortic aneurysms (ATAA) was lower than that of control (CTRL, non-aneurysmal) ascending thoracic aorta (ATA), and the reduced strength was more pronounced among bicuspid (BAV) vs. tricuspid aortic valve (TAV) patients, suggesting a different risk of aortic dissection for BAV patients. We hypothesized that aortic valve morphologic phenotype predicts fiber micro-architectural anomalies in ATA. To test the hypothesis, we characterized the micro-architecture in the longitudinal-radial (Z-RAD) and circumferential-radial (Θ-RAD) planes of human ATA tissue that was artificially dissected medially. The ou…
A custom image-based analysis tool for quantifying elastin and collagen micro-architecture in the wall of the human aorta from multi-photon microscopy
The aorta possesses a micro-architecture that imparts and supports a high degree of compliance and mechanical strength. Alteration of the quantity and/or arrangement of the main load-bearing components of this micro-architecture - the elastin and collagen fibers - leads to mechanical, and hence functional, changes associated with aortic disease and aging. Therefore, in the future, the ability to rigorously characterize the wall fiber micro-architecture could provide insight into the complicated mechanisms of aortic wall remodeling in aging and disease. Elastin and collagen fibers can be observed using state-of-the-art multi-photon microscopy. Image-analysis algorithms have been effective at…
Extracellular matrix fiber microarchitecture is region-specific in bicuspid aortic valve-associated ascending aortopathy
Abstract Objective Ascending thoracic aortic aneurysm (ATAA) in patients with bicuspid aortic valve (BAV) commonly dilate asymmetrically compared with patients with tricuspid aortic valve (TAV). This discrepancy in aneurysm geometry led us to hypothesize that microarchitectural differences underlie the observed asymmetric dilatation pattern. The purpose of this study was to characterize the microarchitectural distinctions of the extracellular matrix of the 2 phenotypes with a focus on the proportion of radially oriented elastin and collagen fibers in different circumferential aortic regions. Methods Aortic tissue rings were obtained just distal to the sinotubular junction from patients with…