A comprehensive study of layer-specific morphological changes in the microstructure of carotid arteries under uniaxial load

Acta Biomaterialia
Witold KrasnyStéphane Avril

Abstract

The load bearing properties of large blood vessels are principally conferred by collagen and elastin networks and their microstructural organization plays an important role in the outcomes of various arterial pathologies. In particular, these fibrous networks are able to rearrange and reorient spatially during mechanical deformations. In this study, we investigate for the first time whether these well-known morphological rearrangements are the same across the whole thickness of blood vessels, and subsequently if the underlying mechanisms that govern these rearrangements can be predicted using affine kinematics. To this aim, we submitted rabbit carotid samples to uniaxial load in three distinct deformation directions, while recording live images of the 3D microstructure using multiphoton microscopy. Our results show that the observed realignment of collagen and elastin in the media layer, along with elastin of the adventitia layer, remained limited to small angles that can be predicted by affine kinematics. We show also that collagen bundles of fibers in the adventitia layer behaved in significantly different fashion. They showed a remarkable capacity to realign in the direction of the load, whatever the loading direction. Measu...Continue Reading

Citations

May 9, 2019·Biomechanics and Modeling in Mechanobiology·Venkat AyyalasomayajulaPierre Badel
Dec 30, 2020·American Journal of Physiology. Heart and Circulatory Physiology·Shana R WatsonSusan M Lessner
Aug 11, 2020·Journal of the Mechanical Behavior of Biomedical Materials·A MorchM Brieu
Jun 4, 2021·Annals of Biomedical Engineering·Alessandro GiudiciBart Spronck
Jul 11, 2021·Journal of Biomechanical Engineering·Elizabeth HoSang-Joon John Lee
Oct 30, 2021·Frontiers in Bioengineering and Biotechnology·Claire MorinStéphane Avril

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