Mid-infrared pulsed laser ablation of the arterial wall. Mechanical origin of "acoustic" wall damage and its effect on wall healing

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Erven, L.; van Leeuwen, T. G.; Post, M. J.; van der Veen, M. J.; Velema, E.; Borst, C.

1992-01-01

Pulsed mid-infrared lasers are an alternative to excimer lasers for transluminal angioplasty. The mid-infrared lasers, however, were reported to produce "acoustic" wall damage that might impair the immediate and long-term results. To study the immediate and long-term effects on the arterial wall,

Wall morphology, blood flow and wall shear stress: MR findings in patients with peripheral artery disease

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Galizia, Mauricio S.; Barker, Alex; Collins, Jeremy; Carr, James [Northwestern University, Department of Radiology, Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL (United States); Liao, Yihua [Northwestern University' s Feinberg School of Medicine, Department of Preventive Medicine, Chicago, IL (United States); McDermott, Mary M. [Northwestern University' s Feinberg School of Medicine, Department of Preventive Medicine, Chicago, IL (United States); Northwestern University' s Feinberg School of Medicine, Department of Medicine, Chicago, IL (United States); Markl, Michael [Northwestern University, Department of Radiology, Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL (United States); Northwestern University, Department Biomedical Engineering, McCormick School of Engineering, Chicago, IL (United States)

2014-04-15

To investigate the influence of atherosclerotic plaques on femoral haemodynamics assessed by two-dimensional (2D) phase-contrast (PC) magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) with three-directional velocity encoding. During 1 year, patients with peripheral artery disease and an ankle brachial index <1.00 were enrolled. After institutional review board approval and written informed consent, 44 patients (age, 70 ± 12 years) underwent common femoral artery MRI. Patients with contra-indications for MRI were excluded. Sequences included 2D time-of-flight, proton-density, T1-weighted and T2-weighted MRI. Electrocardiogram (ECG)-gated 2D PC-MRI with 3D velocity encoding was acquired. A radiologist classified images in five categories. Blood flow, velocity and wall shear stress (WSS) along the vessel circumference were quantified from the PC-MRI data. The acquired images were of good quality for interpretation. There were no image quality problems related to poor ECG-gating or slice positioning. Velocities, oscillatory shear stress and total flow were similar between patients with normal arteries and wall thickening/plaque. Patients with plaques demonstrated regionally increased peak systolic WSS and enhanced WSS eccentricity. Combined multi-contrast morphological imaging of the peripheral arterial wall with PC-MRI with three-directional velocity encoding is a feasible technique. Further study is needed to determine whether flow is an appropriate marker for altered endothelial cell function, vascular remodelling and plaque progression. (orig.)

Changes in CT angiographic opacification of porcine coronary artery wall with patchy altered flow in vasa vasorum.

Science.gov (United States)

Moritz, Regina; Anderson, Jill L; Vercnocke, Andrew J; Wentz, Robert J; Ritman, Erik L

2013-08-01

To evaluate the potential of whole-body CT to detect localized areas of decreased or increased vascularity in coronary arterial walls. We used both microsphere embolization of coronary artery vasa vasorum to generate small areas of hypoperfusion and surrounding hyperperfusion of the arterial wall and diet-induced hypercholesterolemia. As a stimulus for localized angiogenesis, such as occurs in early plaque formation in the coronary arterial wall, microspheres were injected selectively into the LAD coronary artery lumens of anesthetized pigs. Fourteen pigs (acute) then had a segment of their LAD harvested during injection of contrast medium and snap-frozen for subsequent cryo-static micro-CT. An additional thirteen pigs (chronic) were allowed to recover, fed a high cholesterol diet and 3 months later were again anesthetized and a segment of the LAD artery harvested and scanned. The spatial distribution of the contrast agent within the arterial wall was measured in contiguous micro-CT images at right angles to the lumen axis with the area of wall in each cross-sectional image being approximately (0.1 mm)(3) in size. In the acute animals there were no localized areas of increased contrast around the hypoperfused embolized perfusion territories in the arterial wall, but in the chronic animals the hypoperfused areas were surrounded by increased contrast. These results suggest that CT might be able to detect localized regions of increased vascularity in the arterial wall as an indicator of early atherosclerotic stimulation of vasa vasorum proliferation.

Remnant Cholesterol Elicits Arterial Wall Inflammation and a Multilevel Cellular Immune Response in Humans.

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Bernelot Moens, Sophie J; Verweij, Simone L; Schnitzler, Johan G; Stiekema, Lotte C A; Bos, Merijn; Langsted, Anne; Kuijk, Carlijn; Bekkering, Siroon; Voermans, Carlijn; Verberne, Hein J; Nordestgaard, Børge G; Stroes, Erik S G; Kroon, Jeffrey

2017-05-01

Mendelian randomization studies revealed a causal role for remnant cholesterol in cardiovascular disease. Remnant particles accumulate in the arterial wall, potentially propagating local and systemic inflammation. We evaluated the impact of remnant cholesterol on arterial wall inflammation, circulating monocytes, and bone marrow in patients with familial dysbetalipoproteinemia (FD). Arterial wall inflammation and bone marrow activity were measured using 18 F-FDG PET/CT. Monocyte phenotype was assessed with flow cytometry. The correlation between remnant levels and hematopoietic activity was validated in the CGPS (Copenhagen General Population Study). We found a 1.2-fold increase of 18 F-FDG uptake in the arterial wall in patients with FD (n=17, age 60±8 years, remnant cholesterol: 3.26 [2.07-5.71]) compared with controls (n=17, age 61±8 years, remnant cholesterol 0.29 [0.27-0.40]; P wall and cellular inflammation. These findings imply an important inflammatory component to the atherogenicity of remnant cholesterol, contributing to the increased cardiovascular disease risk in patients with FD. © 2017 American Heart Association, Inc.

Exercise-mediated changes in conduit artery wall thickness in humans: role of shear stress

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Thijssen, D.H.J.; Dawson, E.A.; Munckhof, I.C. van den; Tinken, T.M.; Drijver, E. den; Hopkins, N.; Cable, N.T.; Green, D.J.

2011-01-01

Episodic increases in shear stress have been proposed as a mechanism that induces training-induced adaptation in arterial wall remodeling in humans. To address this hypothesis in humans, we examined bilateral brachial artery wall thickness using high-resolution ultrasound in healthy men across an

Fibulin-4 is essential for maintaining arterial wall integrity in conduit but not muscular arteries.

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Halabi, Carmen M; Broekelmann, Thomas J; Lin, Michelle; Lee, Vivian S; Chu, Mon-Li; Mecham, Robert P

2017-05-01

Homozygous or compound heterozygous mutations in fibulin-4 ( FBLN4 ) lead to autosomal recessive cutis laxa type 1B (ARCL1B), a multisystem disorder characterized by significant cardiovascular abnormalities, including abnormal elastin assembly, arterial tortuosity, and aortic aneurysms. We sought to determine the consequences of a human disease-causing mutation in FBLN4 (E57K) on the cardiovascular system and vascular elastic fibers in a mouse model of ARCL1B. Fbln4 E57K/E57K mice were hypertensive and developed arterial elongation, tortuosity, and ascending aortic aneurysms. Smooth muscle cell organization within the arterial wall of large conducting vessels was abnormal, and elastic fibers were fragmented and had a moth-eaten appearance. In contrast, vessel wall structure and elastic fiber integrity were normal in resistance/muscular arteries (renal, mesenteric, and saphenous). Elastin cross-linking and total elastin content were unchanged in large or small arteries, whereas elastic fiber architecture was abnormal in large vessels. While the E57K mutation did not affect Fbln4 mRNA levels, FBLN4 protein was lower in the ascending aorta of mutant animals compared to wild-type arteries but equivalent in mesenteric arteries. We found a differential role of FBLN4 in elastic fiber assembly, where it functions mainly in large conduit arteries. These results suggest that elastin assembly has different requirements depending on vessel type. Normal levels of elastin cross-links in mutant tissue call into question FBLN4's suggested role in mediating lysyl oxidase-elastin interactions. Future studies investigating tissue-specific elastic fiber assembly may lead to novel therapeutic interventions for ARCL1B and other disorders of elastic fiber assembly.

Fibrillar, fibril-associated and basement membrane collagens of the arterial wall: architecture, elasticity and remodeling under stress.

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Osidak, M S; Osidak, E O; Akhmanova, M A; Domogatsky, S P; Domogatskaya, A S

2015-01-01

The ability of a human artery to pass through 150 million liters of blood sustaining 2 billion pulsations of blood pressure with minor deterioration depends on unique construction of the arterial wall. Viscoelastic properties of this construction enable to re-seal the occuring damages apparently without direct immediate participance of the constituent cells. Collagen structures are considered to be the elements that determine the mechanoelastic properties of the wall in parallel with elastin responsible for elasticity and resilience. Collagen scaffold architecture is the function-dependent dynamic arrangement of a dozen different collagen types composing three distinct interacting forms inside the extracellular matrix of the wall. Tightly packed molecules of collagen types I, III, V provide high tensile strength along collagen fibrils but toughness of the collagen scaffold as a whole depends on molecular bonds between distinct fibrils. Apart of other macromolecules in the extracellular matrix (ECM), collagen-specific interlinks involve microfilaments of collagen type VI, meshwork-organized collagen type VIII, and FACIT collagen type XIV. Basement membrane collagen types IV, XV, XVIII and cell-associated collagen XIII enable transmission of mechanical signals between cells and whole artery matrix. Collagen scaffold undergoes continuous remodeling by decomposition promoted with MMPs and reconstitution from newly produced collagen molecules. Pulsatile stress-strain load modulates both collagen synthesis and MMP-dependent collagen degradation. In this way the ECM structure becomes adoptive to mechanical challenges. The mechanoelastic properties of the arterial wall are changed in atherosclerosis concomitantly with collagen turnover both type-specific and dependent on the structure. Improving the feedback could be another approach to restore sufficient blood circulation.

Lack of age-related increase in carotid artery wall viscosity in cardiorespiratory fit men

Science.gov (United States)

Kawano, Hiroshi; Yamamoto, Kenta; Gando, Yuko; Tanimoto, Michiya; Murakami, Haruka; Ohmori, Yumi; Sanada, Kiyoshi; Tabata, Izumi; Higuchi, Mitsuru; Miyachi, Motohiko

2013-01-01

Objectives: Age-related arterial stiffening and reduction of arterial elasticity are attenuated in individuals with high levels of cardiorespiratory fitness. Viscosity is another mechanical characteristic of the arterial wall; however, the effects of age and cardiorespiratory fitness have not been determined. We examined the associations among age, cardiorespiratory fitness and carotid arterial wall viscosity. Methods: A total of 111 healthy men, aged 25–39 years (young) and 40–64 years (middle-aged), were divided into either cardiorespiratory fit or unfit groups on the basis of peak oxygen uptake. The common carotid artery was measured noninvasively by tonometry and automatic tracking of B-mode images to obtain instantaneous pressure and diameter hysteresis loops, and we calculated the effective compliance, isobaric compliance and viscosity index. Results: In the middle-aged men, the viscosity index was larger in the unfit group than in the fit group (2533 vs. 2018 mmHg·s/mm, respectively: P viscosity index was increased with advancing age, but these parameters were unaffected by cardiorespiratory fitness level. Conclusion: These results suggest that the wall viscosity in the central artery is increased with advancing age and that the age-associated increase in wall viscosity may be attenuated in cardiorespiratory fit men. PMID:24029868

PREFACE: Domain wall dynamics in nanostructures Domain wall dynamics in nanostructures

Science.gov (United States)

Marrows, C. H.; Meier, G.

2012-01-01

Domain structures in magnetic materials are ubiquitous and have been studied for decades. The walls that separate them are topological defects in the magnetic order parameter and have a wide variety of complex forms. In general, their investigation is difficult in bulk materials since only the domain structure on the surface of a specimen is visible. Cutting the sample to reveal the interior causes a rearrangement of the domains into a new form. As with many other areas of magnetism, the study of domain wall physics has been revitalised by the advent of nanotechnology. The ability to fabricate nanoscale structures has permitted the formation of simplified and controlled domain patterns; the development of advanced microscopy methods has permitted them to be imaged and then modelled; subjecting them to ultrashort field and current pulses has permitted their dynamics to be explored. The latest results from all of these advances are described in this special issue. Not only has this led to results of great scientific beauty, but also to concepts of great applicability to future information technologies. In this issue the reader will find the latest results for these domain wall dynamics and the high-speed processes of topological structures such as domain walls and magnetic vortices. These dynamics can be driven by the application of magnetic fields, or by flowing currents through spintronic devices using the novel physics of spin-transfer torque. This complexity has been studied using a wide variety of experimental techniques at the edge of the spatial and temporal resolution currently available, and can be described using sophisticated analytical theory and computational modelling. As a result, the dynamics can be engineered to give rise to finely controlled memory and logic devices with new functionality. Moreover, the field is moving to study not only the conventional transition metal ferromagnets, but also complex heterostructures, novel magnets and even other

Coronary artery wall imaging in mice using osmium tetroxide and micro-computed tomography (micro-CT)

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pai, Vinay M.; Kozlowski, Megan; Donahue, Danielle; Miller, Elishiah; Xiao, Xianghui; Chen, Marcus Y.; Yu, Zu-Xi; Connelly, Patricia; Jeffries, Kenneth; Wen, Han

2012-01-01

The high spatial resolution of micro-computed tomography (micro-CT) is ideal for 3D imaging of coronary arteries in intact mouse heart specimens. Previously, micro-CT of mouse heart specimens utilized intravascular contrast agents that hardened within the vessel lumen and allowed a vascular cast to be made. However, for mouse coronary artery disease models, it is highly desirable to image coronary artery walls and highlight plaques. For this purpose, we describe an ex vivo contrast-enhanced micro-CT imaging technique based on tissue staining with osmium tetroxide (OsO 4 ) solution. As a tissue-staining contrast agent, OsO 4 is retained in the vessel wall and surrounding tissue during the fixation process and cleared from the vessel lumens. Its high X-ray attenuation makes the artery wall visible in CT. Additionally, since OsO 4 preferentially binds to lipids, it highlights lipid deposition in the artery wall. We performed micro-CT of heart specimens of 5- to 25-week-old C57BL/6 wild-type mice and 5- to 13-week-old apolipoprotein E knockout (apoE -/- ) mice at 10 μm resolution. The results show that walls of coronary arteries as small as 45 μm in diameter are visible using a table-top micro-CT scanner. Similar image clarity was achieved with 1/2000th the scan time using a synchrotron CT scanner. In 13-week-old apoE mice, lipid-rich plaques are visible in the aorta. Our study shows that the combination of OsO 4 and micro-CT permits the visualization of the coronary artery wall in intact mouse hearts.

Lateral abdominal wall hematoma as a rare complication after carotid artery stenting: a case report

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Satomi Jyunichiro

2009-11-01

Full Text Available Abstract Abdominal wall hematoma is a rare and life-threatening complication after carotid artery stenting (CAS, but it can occur when activated clotting time is prolonged. We report a right lateral abdominal wall hematoma caused by rupture of the superficial circumflex iliac artery after CAS in a 72-year-old man with severe stenosis of the origin of the right internal carotid artery. We performed CAS for the targeted lesion while activated clotting time exceeded 300 seconds. After 2 hours, he complained of right lateral abdominal pain. Abdominal computed tomography revealed an extensive hematoma in the right lateral abdominal wall. Activated clotting time was 180 seconds at this point. Seven hours later, he developed hypotension and hemoglobin level dropped to 11.3 g/dl. Subsequent computed tomography showed enlargement of the hematoma. Emergent selective angiography of the external iliac artery revealed active bleeding from the right superficial circumflex iliac artery. Transcatheter arterial embolization with Gelfoam and microcoils was performed successfully. With more CAS procedures being performed, it is important for endovascular surgeons and radiologists to consider the possibility of abdominal wall hematoma in this situation.

Power spectral estimation of high-harmonics in echoes of wall resonances to improve resolution in non-invasive measurements of wall mechanical properties in rubber tube and ex-vivo artery.

Science.gov (United States)

Bazan, I; Ramos, A; Balay, G; Negreira, C

2018-07-01

The aim of this work is to develop a new type of ultrasonic analysis of the mechanical properties of an arterial wall with improved resolution, and to confirm its feasibility under laboratory conditions. it is expected that this would facilitate a non-invasive path for accurate predictive diagnosis that enables an early detection & therapy of vascular pathologies. In particular, the objective is to detect and quantify the small elasticity changes (in Young's modulus E) of arterial walls, which precede pathology. A submicron axial resolution is required for this analysis, as the periodic widening of the wall (under oscillatory arterial pressure) varies between ±10 and 20 μm. This high resolution represents less than 1% of the parietal thickness (e.g., harmonics of the wall internal resonance f 0 . This was attained via the implementation of an autoregressive parametric algorithm that accurately detects parietal echo-dynamics during a heartbeat. Thus, it was possible to measure the punctual elasticity of the wall, with a higher resolution (> an order of magnitude) compared to conventional approaches. The resolution of a typical ultrasonic image is limited to several hundred microns, and thus, such small changes are undetected. The proposed procedure provides a non-invasive and direct measure of elasticity by doing an estimation of changes in the Nf 0 harmonics and wall thickness with a resolution of 0.1%, for first time. The results obtained by using the classic temporal cross-correlation method (TCC) were compared to those obtained with the new procedure. The latter allowed the evaluation of alterations in the elastic properties of arterial walls that are 30 times smaller than those being detectable with TCC; in fact, the depth resolution of the TCC approach is limited to ≈20 μm for typical SNRs. These values were calculated based on echoes obtained using a reference pattern (rubber tube). The application of the proposed procedure was also confirmed via

Accuracy improvement in measurement of arterial wall elasticity by applying pulse inversion to phased-tracking method

Science.gov (United States)

Miyachi, Yukiya; Arakawa, Mototaka; Kanai, Hiroshi

2018-07-01

In our studies on ultrasonic elasticity assessment, minute change in the thickness of the arterial wall was measured by the phased-tracking method. However, most images in carotid artery examinations contain multiple-reflection noise, making it difficult to evaluate arterial wall elasticity precisely. In the present study, a modified phased-tracking method using the pulse inversion method was examined to reduce the influence of the multiple-reflection noise. Moreover, aliasing in the harmonic components was corrected by the fundamental components. The conventional and proposed methods were applied to a pulsated tube phantom mimicking the arterial wall. For the conventional method, the elasticity was 298 kPa without multiple-reflection noise and 353 kPa with multiple-reflection noise on the posterior wall. That of the proposed method was 302 kPa without multiple-reflection noise and 297 kPa with multiple-reflection noise on the posterior wall. Therefore, the proposed method was very robust against multiple-reflection noise.

Joint segmentation of lumen and outer wall from femoral artery MR images: Towards 3D imaging measurements of peripheral arterial disease.

Science.gov (United States)

Ukwatta, Eranga; Yuan, Jing; Qiu, Wu; Rajchl, Martin; Chiu, Bernard; Fenster, Aaron

2015-12-01

Three-dimensional (3D) measurements of peripheral arterial disease (PAD) plaque burden extracted from fast black-blood magnetic resonance (MR) images have shown to be more predictive of clinical outcomes than PAD stenosis measurements. To this end, accurate segmentation of the femoral artery lumen and outer wall is required for generating volumetric measurements of PAD plaque burden. Here, we propose a semi-automated algorithm to jointly segment the femoral artery lumen and outer wall surfaces from 3D black-blood MR images, which are reoriented and reconstructed along the medial axis of the femoral artery to obtain improved spatial coherence between slices of the long, thin femoral artery and to reduce computation time. The developed segmentation algorithm enforces two priors in a global optimization manner: the spatial consistency between the adjacent 2D slices and the anatomical region order between the femoral artery lumen and outer wall surfaces. The formulated combinatorial optimization problem for segmentation is solved globally and exactly by means of convex relaxation using a coupled continuous max-flow (CCMF) model, which is a dual formulation to the convex relaxed optimization problem. In addition, the CCMF model directly derives an efficient duality-based algorithm based on the modern multiplier augmented optimization scheme, which has been implemented on a GPU for fast computation. The computed segmentations from the developed algorithm were compared to manual delineations from experts using 20 black-blood MR images. The developed algorithm yielded both high accuracy (Dice similarity coefficients ≥ 87% for both the lumen and outer wall surfaces) and high reproducibility (intra-class correlation coefficient of 0.95 for generating vessel wall area), while outperforming the state-of-the-art method in terms of computational time by a factor of ≈ 20. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Arterial wall stiffness in patients with essential hypertension at young age

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kolesnik E.L.

2014-11-01

Full Text Available Research objective was investigating arterial wall stiffness in patients with hypertension at young age and assessing the relationship between subclinical target organs damage and ambulatory blood pressure monitoring (ABPM parameters. 30 male patients aged 18-35 years with essential hypertension stage I and II, hypertension 1 and 2nd grade were surveyed. The examination included general clinical methods, echocardiography, ABPM and suprasystolic sfigmography. It was found that the pulse wave velocity (PWVao (r = 0,557 p <0,01, central aortic blood pressure (SBPao (r = 0,492 p <0,01 and augmentation index (AIxao (r = 0,489 p <0.01 significantly increased with the pa¬tients’ age. Abdominal obesity (r = 0,566 p <0,01 and BMI (r = 0,599 p <0,01 impacted on the PWVao acceleration. Increasing of the left ventricular mass index (LVMI is highly associated with SBPao (r = 0,506 p <0,05 and PWVao (r = 0,434 p <0,05. According to ABPM the most significant correlation with arterial wall stiffness parameters demon¬strated diastolic blood pressure (DBP daytime level (AIxao (r = 0,418 p <0,01, with PWVao (r = 0,699 p <0.01 and SBPao (r = 0,695 p <0,01. Thus, age, excessive body weight and obesity should be considered as unfavorable factors that worsen arterial wall stiffness in patients with hypertension at the age before 35 years. Increase of DBP levels especially during the day causes maximum negative impact on the arterial wall stiffness parameters according to ABPM. Increased SBPao and PWVao in patients with hypertension at a young age are associated with increased left ventricular mass index.

Leukoaraiosis is associated with arterial wall thickness: a quantitative analysis.

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Auriel, Eitan; Csiba, Laszlo; Berenyi, Ervin; Varkonyi, Ildiko; Mehes, Gabor; Kardos, Laszlo; Karni, Arnon; Bornstein, Natan M

2012-06-01

Leukoaraiosis refers to an age-related, abnormal appearance of the brain white matter on neuroimaging. The association between leukoaraiosis and cerebrovascular disease suggests that ischemia may be an important contributing factor; however, the pathogenesis of the condition remains controversial. We hypothesized that physical abnormalities of blood vessels might be culpable and compared the external and internal measurements of blood vessel walls between brains that demonstrated leukoaraiosis on imaging and normal control brains. Fourteen brains of individuals who had been diagnosed as having severe leukoaraiosis and five non-leukoaraiosis control brains were studied. Arterial cross-sections were evaluated by length measurements with an image analysis device. Arterial wall thickness and the ratio of the outer and inner diameters of the vessel were measured. We measured a total of 108 vessels in the leukoaraiosis group and 95 vessels in the control group. The vessel walls of the leukoaraiosis patients were an average of 5.5 µm thicker than the walls of control vessels of the same inside diameter (P = 0.0000, 95% CI 3.01-8.08) and an average of 2.3 µm thicker than walls of control vessels of the same outside diameter (P = 0.016, 95% CI 0.48-4.17). Our data provide evidence that leukoaraiosis is associated with vessel wall thickening in an additive fashion and indicate that structural vascular abnormalities are associated with leukoaraiosis. © 2011 Japanese Society of Neuropathology.

Acute effects of pulsed-laser irradiation on the arterial wall

Science.gov (United States)

Nakamura, Fumitaka; Kvasnicka, Jan; Lu, Hanjiang; Geschwind, Herbert J.; Levame, Micheline; Bousbaa, Hassan; Lange, Francoise

1992-08-01

Pulsed laser coronary angioplasty with an excimer or a holmium-yttrium-aluminum-garnet (Ho:YAG) laser may become an alternative treatment for patients with coronary artery disease. However, little is known about its acute consequences on the normal arterial wall. This study was designed to examine the acute histologic consequences of these two pulsed lasers on the arterial wall of normal iliac arteries in rabbits. Irradiation with each laser was performed in 15 normal iliac sites on eight male New Zealand white rabbits. The excimer laser was operated at 308 nm, 25 Hz, 50 mJ/mm2/pulse, and 135 nsec/pulse and the Ho:YAG laser was operated at 2.1 micrometers , 3/5 Hz, 400 mJ/pulse, and 250 microsecond(s) ec/pulse. The excimer and Ho:YAG laser were coupled into a multifiber wire-guided catheter of 1.4 and 1.5 mm diameter, respectively. The sites irradiated with excimer or Ho:YAG laser had the same kinds of histologic features, consisting of exfoliation of the endothelium, disorganization of internal elastic lamina, localized necrosis of vascular smooth muscle cells, and fissures in the medial layer. However, the sites irradiated with excimer laser had lower grading scores than those irradiated with Ho:YAG laser (p vascular injury.

Carotid and Femoral Arterial Wall Distensibility During Long-Duration Spaceflight.

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Arbeille, Philippe; Provost, Romain; Zuj, Kathryn

2017-10-01

This study aimed to assess changes in common carotid (CA) and superficial femoral (FA) arterial stiffness during long-duration spaceflight. Ultrasound imaging was used to investigate the CA and FA of 10 astronauts preflight (PRE), on flight day 15 (FD15), after 4-5 mo (FD4-5m), and 4 d after return to Earth (R+4). Arterial wall properties were assessed through the calculation of strain, stiffness (β), pressure-strain elastic modulus (Ep), and distensibility (DI). Stiffness indices were assessed for potential correlations to measurements of intima-media thickness (IMT). Significant effects of spaceflight were found for all CA stiffness indices, indicating an increase in arterial stiffness. CA strain was reduced by 34 ± 31% on FD15 and 50 ± 16% on FD4-5m and remained reduced by 42 ± 14% on R+4 with respect to PRE values. On FD4-5m, with respect to PRE values, DI was reduced by 46 ± 25% and β and Ep were increased by 124 ± 95% and 118 ± 92%, respectively. FA arterial stiffness indices appeared to show similar changes; however, a main effect of spaceflight was only found for strain. Correlation analysis showed weak but significant relationships between measurements of CA IMT and arterial stiffness indices, but no relationships were found for FA measurements. The observed change in CA and FA stiffness indices suggest that spaceflight results in an increase in arterial stiffness. That these changes were not strongly related to measurements of IMT suggests the possibility of different mechanisms contributing to the observed results.Arbeille P, Provost R, Zuj K. Carotid and femoral arterial wall distensibility during long-duration spaceflight. Aerosp Med Hum Perform. 2017; 88(10):924-930.

Delayed Contrast-Enhanced MRI of the Coronary Artery Wall in Takayasu Arteritis

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Schneeweis, Christopher; Schnackenburg, Bernhard; Stuber, Matthias; Berger, Alexander; Schneider, Udo; Yu, Jing; Gebker, Rolf; Weiss, Robert G.; Fleck, Eckart; Kelle, Sebastian

2012-01-01

Background Takayasu arteritis (TA) is a rare form of chronic inflammatory granulomatous arteritis of the aorta and its major branches. Late gadolinium enhancement (LGE) with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) has demonstrated its value for the detection of vessel wall alterations in TA. The aim of this study was to assess LGE of the coronary artery wall in patients with TA compared to patients with stable CAD. Methods We enrolled 9 patients (8 female, average age 46±13 years) with proven TA. In the CAD group 9 patients participated (8 male, average age 65±10 years). Studies were performed on a commercial 3T whole-body MR imaging system (Achieva; Philips, Best, The Netherlands) using a 3D inversion prepared navigator gated spoiled gradient-echo sequence, which was repeated 34–45 minutes after low-dose gadolinium administration. Results No coronary vessel wall enhancement was observed prior to contrast in either group. Post contrast, coronary LGE on IR scans was detected in 28 of 50 segments (56%) seen on T2-Prep scans in TA and in 25 of 57 segments (44%) in CAD patients. LGE quantitative assessment of coronary artery vessel wall CNR post contrast revealed no significant differences between the two groups (CNR in TA: 6.0±2.4 and 7.3±2.5 in CAD; p = 0.474). Conclusion Our findings suggest that LGE of the coronary artery wall seems to be common in patients with TA and similarly pronounced as in CAD patients. The observed coronary LGE seems to be rather unspecific, and differentiation between coronary vessel wall fibrosis and inflammation still remains unclear. PMID:23236382

Impact of Age and Aerobic Exercise Training on Conduit Artery Wall Thickness: Role of the Shear Pattern.

Science.gov (United States)

Tanahashi, Koichiro; Kosaki, Keisei; Sawano, Yuriko; Yoshikawa, Toru; Tagawa, Kaname; Kumagai, Hiroshi; Akazawa, Nobuhiko; Maeda, Seiji

2017-01-01

Hemodynamic shear stress is the frictional force of blood on the arterial wall. The shear pattern in the conduit artery affects the endothelium and may participate in the development and progression of atherosclerosis. We investigated the role of the shear pattern in age- and aerobic exercise-induced changes in conduit artery wall thickness via cross-sectional and interventional studies. In a cross-sectional study, we found that brachial shear rate patterns and brachial artery intima-media thickness (IMT) correlated with age. Additionally, brachial artery shear rate patterns were associated with brachial artery IMT in 102 middle-aged and older individuals. In an interventional study, 39 middle-aged and older subjects were divided into 2 groups: control and exercise. The exercise group completed 12 weeks of aerobic exercise training. Aerobic exercise training significantly increased the antegrade shear rate and decreased the retrograde shear rate and brachial artery IMT. Moreover, changes in the brachial artery antegrade shear rate and the retrograde shear rate correlated with the change in brachial artery IMT. The results of the present study indicate that changes in brachial artery shear rate patterns may contribute to age- and aerobic exercise training-induced changes in brachial artery wall thickness. © 2017 S. Karger AG, Basel.

Reduction in arterial wall strain with aggressive lipid-lowering therapy in patients with carotid artery disease

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li Zhi Yong; Tang, T.Y.; Gillard, J.H.; Jiang Fan; Zhang Yun

2011-01-01

Inflammation and biomechanical factors have been associated with the development of vulnerable atherosclerotic plaques. Lipid-lowering therapy has been shown to be effective in stabilizing them by reducing plaque inflammation. Its effect on arterial wall strain, however, remains unknown. The aim of the present study was to investigate the role of high- and low-dose lipid-lowering therapy using an HMG-CoA reductase inhibitor, atorvastatin, on arterial wall strain. Forty patients with carotid stenosis >40% were successfully followed up during the Atorvastatin Therapy: Effects on Reduction Of Macrophage Activity (ATHEROMA; ISRCTN64894118) Trial. All patients had plaque inflammation as shown by intraplaque accumulation of ultrasmall super paramagnetic particles of iron oxide on magnetic resonance imaging at baseline. Structural analysis was performed and change of strain was compared between high- and low-dose statin at 0 and 12 weeks. There was no significant difference in strain between the 2 groups at baseline (P=0.6). At 12 weeks, the maximum strain was significantly lower in the 80-mg group than in the 10-mg group (0.085±0.033 vs. 0.169±0.084; P=0.001). A significant reduction (26%) of maximum strain was observed in the 80-mg group at 12 weeks (0.018±0.02; P=0.01). Aggressive lipid-lowering therapy is associated with a significant reduction in arterial wall strain. The reduction in biomechanical strain may be associated with reductions in plaque inflammatory burden. (author)

Reduction in arterial wall strain with aggressive lipid-lowering therapy in patients with carotid artery disease

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yong, Li Zhi [School of Biological Science and Medical Engineering, Southeast Univ., Nanjing (China); Tang, T Y; Gillard, J H [School of Clinical Medicine, Univ. of Cambridge, Cambridge (United Kingdom); Fan, Jiang; Yun, Zhang [Qilu Hospital, Shandong Univ., Jinan (China)

2011-05-15

Inflammation and biomechanical factors have been associated with the development of vulnerable atherosclerotic plaques. Lipid-lowering therapy has been shown to be effective in stabilizing them by reducing plaque inflammation. Its effect on arterial wall strain, however, remains unknown. The aim of the present study was to investigate the role of high- and low-dose lipid-lowering therapy using an HMG-CoA reductase inhibitor, atorvastatin, on arterial wall strain. Forty patients with carotid stenosis >40% were successfully followed up during the Atorvastatin Therapy: Effects on Reduction Of Macrophage Activity (ATHEROMA; ISRCTN64894118) Trial. All patients had plaque inflammation as shown by intraplaque accumulation of ultrasmall super paramagnetic particles of iron oxide on magnetic resonance imaging at baseline. Structural analysis was performed and change of strain was compared between high- and low-dose statin at 0 and 12 weeks. There was no significant difference in strain between the 2 groups at baseline (P=0.6). At 12 weeks, the maximum strain was significantly lower in the 80-mg group than in the 10-mg group (0.085{+-}0.033 vs. 0.169{+-}0.084; P=0.001). A significant reduction (26%) of maximum strain was observed in the 80-mg group at 12 weeks (0.018{+-}0.02; P=0.01). Aggressive lipid-lowering therapy is associated with a significant reduction in arterial wall strain. The reduction in biomechanical strain may be associated with reductions in plaque inflammatory burden. (author)

Feasibility Study of Ex Ovo Chick Chorioallantoic Artery Model for Investigating Pulsatile Variation of Arterial Geometry.

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Kweon-Ho Nam

Full Text Available Despite considerable research efforts on the relationship between arterial geometry and cardiovascular pathology, information is lacking on the pulsatile geometrical variation caused by arterial distensibility and cardiomotility because of the lack of suitable in vivo experimental models and the methodological difficulties in examining the arterial dynamics. We aimed to investigate the feasibility of using a chick embryo system as an experimental model for basic research on the pulsatile variation of arterial geometry. Optical microscope video images of various arterial shapes in chick chorioallantoic circulation were recorded from different locations and different embryo samples. The high optical transparency of the chorioallantoic membrane (CAM allowed clear observation of tiny vessels and their movements. Systolic and diastolic changes in arterial geometry were visualized by detecting the wall boundaries from binary images. Several to hundreds of microns of wall displacement variations were recognized during a pulsatile cycle. The spatial maps of the wall motion harmonics and magnitude ratio of harmonic components were obtained by analyzing the temporal brightness variation at each pixel in sequential grayscale images using spectral analysis techniques. The local variations in the spectral characteristics of the arterial wall motion were reflected well in the analysis results. In addition, mapping the phase angle of the fundamental frequency identified the regional variations in the wall motion directivity and phase shift. Regional variations in wall motion phase angle and fundamental-to-second harmonic ratio were remarkable near the bifurcation area. In summary, wall motion in various arterial geometry including straight, curved and bifurcated shapes was well observed in the CAM artery model, and their local and cyclic variations could be characterized by Fourier and wavelet transforms of the acquired video images. The CAM artery model with

Impact of exercise training on arterial wall thickness in humans.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Thijssen, D.H.J.; Cable, N.T.; Green, D.J.

2012-01-01

Thickening of the carotid artery wall has been adopted as a surrogate marker of pre-clinical atherosclerosis, which is strongly related to increased cardiovascular risk. The cardioprotective effects of exercise training, including direct effects on vascular function and lumen dimension, have been

Automated image segmentation and registration of vessel wall MRI for quantitative assessment of carotid artery vessel wall dimensions and plaque composition

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Klooster, Ronald van 't

2014-01-01

The main goal of this thesis was to develop methods for automated segmentation, registration and classification of the carotid artery vessel wall and plaque components using multi-sequence MR vessel wall images to assess atherosclerosis. First, a general introduction into atherosclerosis and

Hypotrophy of conduit artery walls of the offspring of nitric oxide-defective rats

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Kristek F.

2004-01-01

Full Text Available The objective of the present study was to investigate the structure of the arterial walls of the offspring stemming from nitric oxide (NO-defective hypertensive parents. The parents were treated with N G-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester (40 mg kg-1 day-1 for 5 weeks. Blood pressure was measured noninvasively in six 30-day-old rats and nine age-matched controls. The cardiovascular system was perfused with glutaraldehyde at 120 mmHg. The thoracic aorta and carotid artery were processed for electron microscopy, and geometry was determined by light microscopy. Endothelial cells, smooth muscle cells (SMC and extracellular matrix (ECM were determined by the point counting method in electron micrographs of the carotid artery. The blood pressure of experimental offspring was 150.0 ± 2.3 vs 104.6 ± 2.1 mmHg (P < 0.01 for the controls and their heart/body weight ratio of 3.9 ± 0.1 vs 4.4 ± 0.2 (P < 0.05 for the controls indicated cardiac hypotrophy. The wall thickness (tunica intima and media of the thoracic aorta and carotid artery of experimental offspring was decreased to 78.9% (P < 0.01 and 83.8% (P < 0.01, respectively, compared to controls, as confirmed by a respective cross-sectional area of 85.3% (P < 0.01 and 84.1% (P < 0.01. The wall thickness/inner diameter ratio was reduced to 75% (P < 0.01 in the thoracic artery and to 81.5% (P < 0.01 in the carotid artery. No change in endothelial cell volume density or ECM was observed in the tunica intima of the carotid artery, and SMC volume density was lower in the tunica media (37.6 ± 0.9 vs 44.7 ± 1.1% for controls, P < 0.01, indicating compromised SMC development. Interference with arginine metabolism, a decrease in NO, and other factors are possible mechanisms underlying the structural alterations of the cardiovascular system of offspring from NO-defective hypertensive rats.

Additional value of B-flow imaging in arterial wall calcifications.

Science.gov (United States)

D'Abate, Fabrizio; de Bruin, Jorg L

2018-02-01

The accuracy of color Doppler ultrasonography (CDU) is hampered by the presence of arterial wall calcifications. B-flow imaging may overcome these limitations. We present a case of a severely calcified stenosis of the right common femoral artery (CFA) diagnosed with the aid of B-flow imaging. Both the CT angiography scan and CDU were limited by the presence of diffuse dense arterial calcifications. B-flow imaging showed a >75% stenosis of the CFA. B-flow imaging appears to improve the accuracy of CDU in the presence of calcified stenosis of the CFA. It is of clinical relevance to improve the duplex sonographic accuracy, ideally reducing the need for other imaging modalities prior to surgery. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Clin Ultrasound 46:136-139, 2018. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Association between proximal internal carotid artery steno-occlusive disease and diffuse wall thickening in its petrous segment: a magnetic resonance vessel wall imaging study

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chen, Xiaoyi; Li, Dongye [Capital Medical University and Beijing Institute for Brain Disorders, Center for Brain Disorders Research, Beijing (China); Tsinghua University School of Medicine, Center for Biomedical Imaging Research, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Beijing (China); Zhao, Huilin [Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Department of Radiology, Renji Hospital, School of Medicine, Shanghai (China); Chen, Zhensen; Qiao, Huiyu; He, Le; Li, Rui [Tsinghua University School of Medicine, Center for Biomedical Imaging Research, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Beijing (China); Cui, Yuanyuan [PLA General Hospital, Department of Radiology, Beijing (China); Zhou, Zechen [Philips Research China, Healthcare Department, Beijing (China); Yuan, Chun [Tsinghua University School of Medicine, Center for Biomedical Imaging Research, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Beijing (China); University of Washington, Department of Radiology, Seattle, WA (United States); Zhao, Xihai [Tsinghua University School of Medicine, Center for Biomedical Imaging Research, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Beijing (China); Beijing Institute for Brain Disorders, Center for Stroke, Beijing (China)

2017-05-15

Significant stenosis or occlusion in carotid arteries may lead to diffuse wall thickening (DWT) in the arterial wall of downstream. This study aimed to investigate the correlation between proximal internal carotid artery (ICA) steno-occlusive disease and DWT in ipsilateral petrous ICA. Symptomatic patients with atherosclerotic stenosis (>0%) in proximal ICA were recruited and underwent carotid MR vessel wall imaging. The 3D motion sensitized-driven equilibrium prepared rapid gradient-echo (3D-MERGE) was acquired for characterizing the wall thickness and longitudinal extent of the lesions in petrous ICA and the distance from proximal lesion to the petrous ICA. The stenosis degree in proximal ICA was measured on the time-of-flight (TOF) images. In total, 166 carotid arteries from 125 patients (mean age 61.0 ± 10.5 years, 99 males) were eligible for final analysis and 64 showed DWT in petrous ICAs. The prevalence of severe DWT in petrous ICA was 1.4%, 5.3%, 5.9%, and 80.4% in ipsilateral proximal ICAs with stenosis category of 1%-49%, 50%-69%, 70%-99%, and total occlusion, respectively. Proximal ICA stenosis was significantly correlated with the wall thickness in petrous ICA (r = 0.767, P < 0.001). Logistic regression analysis showed that proximal ICA stenosis was independently associated with DWT in ipsilateral petrous ICA (odds ratio (OR) = 2.459, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.896-3.189, P < 0.001). Proximal ICA steno-occlusive disease is independently associated with DWT in ipsilateral petrous ICA. (orig.)

Association between proximal internal carotid artery steno-occlusive disease and diffuse wall thickening in its petrous segment: a magnetic resonance vessel wall imaging study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen, Xiaoyi; Li, Dongye; Zhao, Huilin; Chen, Zhensen; Qiao, Huiyu; He, Le; Li, Rui; Cui, Yuanyuan; Zhou, Zechen; Yuan, Chun; Zhao, Xihai

2017-01-01

Significant stenosis or occlusion in carotid arteries may lead to diffuse wall thickening (DWT) in the arterial wall of downstream. This study aimed to investigate the correlation between proximal internal carotid artery (ICA) steno-occlusive disease and DWT in ipsilateral petrous ICA. Symptomatic patients with atherosclerotic stenosis (>0%) in proximal ICA were recruited and underwent carotid MR vessel wall imaging. The 3D motion sensitized-driven equilibrium prepared rapid gradient-echo (3D-MERGE) was acquired for characterizing the wall thickness and longitudinal extent of the lesions in petrous ICA and the distance from proximal lesion to the petrous ICA. The stenosis degree in proximal ICA was measured on the time-of-flight (TOF) images. In total, 166 carotid arteries from 125 patients (mean age 61.0 ± 10.5 years, 99 males) were eligible for final analysis and 64 showed DWT in petrous ICAs. The prevalence of severe DWT in petrous ICA was 1.4%, 5.3%, 5.9%, and 80.4% in ipsilateral proximal ICAs with stenosis category of 1%-49%, 50%-69%, 70%-99%, and total occlusion, respectively. Proximal ICA stenosis was significantly correlated with the wall thickness in petrous ICA (r = 0.767, P < 0.001). Logistic regression analysis showed that proximal ICA stenosis was independently associated with DWT in ipsilateral petrous ICA (odds ratio (OR) = 2.459, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.896-3.189, P < 0.001). Proximal ICA steno-occlusive disease is independently associated with DWT in ipsilateral petrous ICA. (orig.)

Incidental intima-media wall changes in the lower-limb arteries: a ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

This case series describes the observed presence of echogenic circular “beads” identified by high-resolution ultrasound imaging in the peripheral arterial walls of the lower limbs of three vascularly asymptomatic runners. The aetiology, mechanisms and clinical implications of these observations remain uncertain. Keywords: ...

Intimal hyperplasia and wall shear in arterial bypass graft distal anastomoses: an in vivo model study.

Science.gov (United States)

Keynton, R S; Evancho, M M; Sims, R L; Rodway, N V; Gobin, A; Rittgers, S E

2001-10-01

The observation of intimal hyperplasia at bypass graft anastomoses has suggested a potential interaction between local hemodynamics and vascular wall response. Wall shear has been particularly implicated because of its known effects upon the endothelium of normal vessels and, thus, was examined as to its possible role in the development of intimal hyperplasia in arterial bypass graft distal anastomoses. Tapered (4-7 mm I.D.) e-PTFE synthetic grafts 6 cm long were placed as bilateral carotid artery bypasses in six adult, mongrel dogs weighing between 25 and 30 kg with distal anastomotic graft-to-artery diameter ratios (DR) of either 1.0 or 1.5. Immediately following implantation, simultaneous axial velocity measurements were made in the toe and artery floor regions in the plane of the anastomosis at radial increments of 0.35 mm, 0.70 mm, and 1.05 mm using a specially designed 20 MHz triple crystal ultrasonic wall shear rate transducer Mean, peak, and pulse amplitude wall shear rates (WSRs), their absolute values, the spatial and temporal wall shear stress gradients (WSSG), and the oscillatory shear index (OSI) were computed from these velocity measurements. All grafts were harvested after 12 weeks implantation and measurements of the degree of intimal hyperplasia (IH) were made along the toe region and the artery floor of the host artery in 1 mm increments. While some IH occurred along the toe region (8.35+/-23.1 microm) and was significantly different between DR groups (p<0.003), the greatest amount occurred along the artery floor (81.6+/-106.5 microm, mean +/- S.D.) (p < 0.001) although no significant differences were found between DR groups. Linear regressions were performed on the paired IH and mean, peak, and pulse amplitude WSR data as well as the absolute mean, peak, and pulse amplitude WSR data from all grafts. The mean and absolute mean WSRs showed a modest correlation with IH (r = -0.406 and -0.370, respectively) with further improvements seen (r = -0

Constitutive modelling of an arterial wall supported by microscopic measurements

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Vychytil J.

2012-06-01

Full Text Available An idealized model of an arterial wall is proposed as a two-layer system. Distinct mechanical response of each layer is taken into account considering two types of strain energy functions in the hyperelasticity framework. The outer layer, considered as a fibre-reinforced composite, is modelled using the structural model of Holzapfel. The inner layer, on the other hand, is represented by a two-scale model mimicing smooth muscle tissue. For this model, material parameters such as shape, volume fraction and orientation of smooth muscle cells are determined using the microscopic measurements. The resulting model of an arterial ring is stretched axially and loaded with inner pressure to simulate the mechanical response of a porcine arterial segment during inflation and axial stretching. Good agreement of the model prediction with experimental data is promising for further progress.

EFFECTS OF PARENT ARTERY SEGMENTATION AND ANEURISMALWALL ELASTICITY ON PATIENT-SPECIFIC HEMODYNAMIC SIMULATIONS

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

CHEN Jia-liang; DING Guang-hong; YANG Xin-jian; LI Hai-yun

2011-01-01

It is well known that hemodynamics and wall tension play an important role in the formation,growth and rupture of aneurysms.In the present study,the authors investigated the influence of parent artery segmentation and aneurismal-wall elasticity on patient-specific hemodynamic simulations with two patient-specific eases of cerebral aneurysms.Realistic models of the aneurysms were constructed from 3-D angiography images and blood flow dynamics was studied under physiologically representative waveform of inflow.For each aneurysm three computational models were constructed:Model 1 with more extensive upstream parent artery with the rigid arterial and aneurismal wall,Model 2 with the partial upstream parent artery with the elastic arterial and aneurismal wall,Model 3 with more extensive upstream parent artery with the rigid wall for arterial wall far from the aneurysm and the elastic wall for arterial wall near the aneurysm.The results show that Model 1 could predict complex intra-aneurismal flow patterns and wall shear stress distribution in the aneurysm,but is unable to give aneurismal wall deformation and tension,Model 2 demonstrates aneurismal wall deformation and tension,but fails to properly model inflow pattern contributed by the upstream parent artery,resulting in local misunderstanding Wall Shear Stress (WSS) distribution,Model 3 can overcome limitations of the former two models,and give an overall and accurate analysis on intra-aneurismal flow patterns,wall shear stress distribution,aneurismal-wall deformation and tension.Therefore we suggest that the proper length of extensive upstream parent artery and aneuri-smal-wall elasticity should be considered carefully in establishing computational model to predict the intra-aneurismal hemodynamic and wall tension.

Effects of iodinated contrast media on common carotid and brachial artery blood flow and wall shear stress

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Irace, C.; Tamburini, S.; Bertucci, B.; Franceschi, M.S. de; Gnasso, A.

2006-01-01

The aim of our study was to evaluate the effect of the intravenous contrast media iomeprol on wall shear stress, blood flow and vascular parameters in the common carotid and brachial artery. Thirty outpatients undergoing thoracic or abdominal spiral CT scans were studied. The internal diameter and flow velocity of the common carotid and brachial artery were evaluated by ultrasound, and blood viscosity was measured before and after low osmolality iomeprol (Iomeron 350) injection. The wall shear stress, blood flow and pulsatility index were calculated. To test the differences between groups, the Wilcoxon rank test and Mann Whitney U test were applied. Blood viscosity decreased slightly, but significantly after contrast media (4.6±0.7 vs. 4.5±0.7 mPa.s, P=0.02). Contrarily, blood flow and wall shear stress did not change in the common carotid artery, but significantly decreased in the brachial artery (0.9±0.4 vs. 0.6±0.3 ml/s, P<0.0001, and 41.5±13.9 vs. 35.3±11.0 dynes/cm2, P<0.002, respectively), whereas the pulsatility index significantly increased in the brachial artery (5.0±3.3 vs. 7.5±5.3, P<0.001). Iomeprol injection causes blood flow and wall shear stress reduction of the brachial artery; the rise in the pulsatility index suggests an increase in peripheral vascular resistance. Further investigation is needed to evaluate whether these modifications can be clinically relevant. (orig.)

Cryopreserved human aortic root allografts arterial wall: Structural changes occurring during thawing.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Robert Novotny

Full Text Available The aim of our experimental work was to assess morphological changes of arterial wall that arise during different thawing protocols of a cryopreserved human aortic root allograft (CHARA arterial wall.The experiment was performed on CHARAs. Two thawing protocols were tested: 1, CHARAs were thawed at a room temperature at +23°C; 2, CHARAs were placed directly into a water bath at +37°C.After fixation, all samples were washed in distilled water for 5 min, and dehydrated in a graded ethanol series (70, 85, 95, and 100% for 5 min at each level. The tissue samples were then immersed in 100% hexamethyldisilazane for 10 minutes and air dried in an exhaust hood at room temperature. Processed samples were mounted on stainless steel stubs, coated with gold.Thawing protocol 1: All 6 (100% samples showed loss of the endothelium and damage to the subendothelial layers with randomly dispersed circular defects and micro-fractures without smooth muscle cells contractions in the tunica media. Thawing protocol 2: All 6 (100% samples showed loss of endothelium from the luminal surface, longitudinal corrugations in the direction of blood flow caused by smooth muscle cells contractions in the tunica media with frequent fractures in the subendothelial layer.All the samples thawed at the room temperature showed smaller structural damage to the CHARA arterial wall with no smooth muscle cell contraction in tunica media when compared to the samples thawed in a water bath.

Nonmassive acute pulmonary embolism: evaluation of the impact of pulmonary arterial wall distensibility on the assessment of the CT obstruction score.

Science.gov (United States)

Bigot, Julien; Rémy-Jardin, Martine; Duhamel, Alain; Gorgos, Andréi-Bogdan; Faivre, Jean-Baptiste; Rémy, Jacques

2010-02-01

To evaluate the impact of pulmonary arterial wall distensibility on the assessment of a computed tomography (CT) score in patients with nonmassive pulmonary embolism (PE) (ie, Mastora score). The arterial wall distensibility of five central pulmonary arteries (pulmonary artery trunk, right and left main pulmonary arteries, right and left interlobar pulmonary arteries) was studied on ECG-gated CT angiographic studies of the chest in 15 patients with no pulmonary arterial hypertension (group 1; mean pulmonary artery pressure: 17.2 mm Hg) and 9 patients with nonmassive PE (group 2), using 2D reconstructions at every 10% of the R-R interval. The systolic and diastolic reconstruction time windows of the examined arteries were identical in the 2 groups, obtained at 20% and 80% of the R-R interval, respectively. No statistically significant difference was observed between the mean values of the pulmonary arterial wall distensibility between the 2 groups, varying between 20.5% and 24% in group 1 and between 23.3% and 25.9% in group 2. The coefficients of variation of the average arterial surfaces were found to vary between 4.30% and 6.50% in group 1 and 4.2% and 8.4% in group 2. Except the pulmonary artery trunk in group 2, all the intraclass correlation coefficients were around 0.8 or greater than 0.8, that is the cutoff for good homogeneity of measurements. The pulmonary arterial wall systolic-diastolic distensibility does not interfere with the assessment of a CT obstruction score in the setting of nonmassive PE.

Mechanobiology of LDL mass transport in the arterial wall under the effect of magnetic field, part I: Diffusion rate

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Aminfar, Habib, E-mail: hh_aminfar@tabrizu.ac.ir [Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, University of Tabriz, Tabriz (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Mohammadpourfard, Mousa, E-mail: Mohammadpour@tabrizu.ac.ir [Faculty of Chemical and Petroleum Engineering, University of Tabriz, Tabriz 5166616471 (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Khajeh, Kosar, E-mail: k.khajeh.2005@tabrizu.ac.ir [Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, University of Tabriz, Tabriz (Iran, Islamic Republic of)

2017-03-15

It is well-known that the Low Density Lipoprotein (LDL) can accumulate and penetrate into the arterial wall. Here, we have investigated the diffusion rate of macromolecules across the porous layer of blood vessel under the effects of magnetic force. By using a finite volume technique, it was found that magnetic field makes alterations in diffusion rate of LDLs, also surface concentration of macromolecules on the walls. As well, the influence of different value of Re and Sc number in the presence of a magnetic field have shown as nondimensional concentration profiles. Magnetic field considered as a body force, porous layer simulated by using Darcy's law and the blood regarded as nano fluid which was examined as a single phase model. - Highlights: • LDLs mass transfer across the arterial wall under magnetic field has simulated numerically. • Arterial wall assumed as a homogeneous porous layer by using Darcy's law. • Blood containing 4% Vol. Fe{sub 3}O{sub 4} regarded as nanofluid and has examined by single phase model. • Magnetic field significantly affects the diffusion rate of LDLs through porous arterial wall.

Coronary artery bypass grafting and concomitant excision of chest wall chondrosarcoma

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ganti Somsekhar

2009-02-01

Full Text Available Abstract Coexistence of coronary artery disease and cancer with both requiring surgical treatment at the same time is rare. A 52 year male undergoing elective coronary artery bypass grafting was incidentally discovered to have a large soft tissue mass of variable consistency with cartilaginous elements arising from the right costal margin and adjoining ribs by a broad attachment and protruding into right pleural cavity. Frozen section suggested it to be either a chondrosarcoma or a teratoma. A wide excision of the mass with the adjoining muscle and periosteum along with quadruple coronary artery bypass grafting was done. This report is unusual on account of a being the first reported case in world literature of concomitant excision of chondrosarcoma and coronary artery bypass grafting and b the conservative management of the incidentally discovered chondrosarcoma by wide excision rather than chest wall resection with no local recurrence to date. Pathology of chondrosarcoma, in particular, and various management strategies when coronary artery disease and cancer coexist, in general, is discussed.

Comparative measurement of silicon and major elements (P,S,Cl,K,Ca) in arterial walls using macro and microbeam analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Moretto, P.

1987-01-01

There are few techniques available for the measurement of silicon at trace levels in biological materials. PIXE and prompt nuclear reaction analysis were used to locate and measure silicon and major elements in arterial walls. Macrobeam analysis, carried out by the Van de Graaff accelerator at CENBG, enabled measurement of mean tissue levels. Microbeam analysis, using the nuclear microprobe at Karlsruhe, yielded the distribution of these elements through the thickness of the arterial wall. The microanalyses were performed on arterial walls from healthy rabbits and the macrobeam study was carried out on the same samples and also on human aorta specimens [fr

Segmentation of arterial vessel wall motion to sub-pixel resolution using M-mode ultrasound.

Science.gov (United States)

Fancourt, Craig; Azer, Karim; Ramcharan, Sharmilee L; Bunzel, Michelle; Cambell, Barry R; Sachs, Jeffrey R; Walker, Matthew

2008-01-01

We describe a method for segmenting arterial vessel wall motion to sub-pixel resolution, using the returns from M-mode ultrasound. The technique involves measuring the spatial offset between all pairs of scans from their cross-correlation, converting the spatial offsets to relative wall motion through a global optimization, and finally translating from relative to absolute wall motion by interpolation over the M-mode image. The resulting detailed wall distension waveform has the potential to enhance existing vascular biomarkers, such as strain and compliance, as well as enable new ones.

The Direct Effect of Flexible Walls on Fontan Connection Fluid Dynamics

Science.gov (United States)

Tree, Mike; Fagan, Kiley; Yoganathan, Ajit

2014-11-01

The current standard treatment for sufferers of congenital heart defects is the palliative Fontan procedure. The Fontan procedure results in an anastomosis of major veins directly to the branched pulmonary arteries bypassing the dysfunctional ventricle. This total cavopulmonary connection (TCPC) extends life past birth, but Fontan patients still suffer long-term complications like decreased exercise capacity, protein-losing enteropathy, and pulmonary arteriovenous malformations (PAVM). These complications have direct ties to fluid dynamics within the connection. Previous experimental and computation studies of Fontan connection fluid dynamics employed rigid vessel models. More recent studies utilize flexible models, but a direct comparison of the fundamental fluid dynamics between rigid and flexible vessels only exists for a computational model, without a direct experimental validation. Thus, this study was a direct comparison of fluid dynamics within a rigid and two compliant idealized TCPCs. 2D particle image velocimetry measurements were collected at the connection center plane. Results include power loss, hepatic flow distribution, fluid shear stress, and flow structure recognition. The effect of flexible walls on these values and clinical impact will be discussed.

Combined aerobic and resistance exercise training decreases peripheral but not central artery wall thickness in subjects with type 2 diabetes.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Schreuder, T.H.A.; Munckhof, I.C.L. van den; Poelkens, F.; Hopman, M.T.; Thijssen, D.H.

2015-01-01

OBJECTIVE: Little is known about the impact of exercise training on conduit artery wall thickness in type 2 diabetes. We examined the local and systemic impact of exercise training on superficial femoral (SFA), brachial (BA), and carotid artery (CA) wall thickness in type 2 diabetes patients and

Hemodynamics in stented vertebral artery ostial stenosis based on computational fluid dynamics simulations.

Science.gov (United States)

Qiao, Aike; Dai, Xuan; Niu, Jing; Jiao, Liqun

2016-01-01

Hemodynamic factors may affect the potential occurrence of in-stent restenosis (ISR) after intervention procedure of vertebral artery ostial stenosis (VAOS). The purpose of the present study is to investigate the influence of stent protrusion length in implantation strategy on the local hemodynamics of the VAOS. CTA images of a 58-year-old female patient with posterior circulation transient ischemic attack were used to perform a 3D reconstruction of the vertebral artery. Five models of the vertebral artery before and after the stent implantation were established. Model 1 was without stent implantation, Model 2-5 was with stent protruding into the subclavian artery for 0, 1, 2, 3 mm, respectively. Computational fluid dynamics simulations based on finite element analysis were employed to mimic the blood flow in arteries and to assess hemodynamic conditions, particularly the blood flow velocity and wall shear stress (WSS). The WSS and the blood flow velocity at the vertebral artery ostium were reduced by 85.33 and 35.36% respectively after stents implantation. The phenomenon of helical flow disappeared. Hemodynamics comparison showed that stent struts that protruded 1 mm into the subclavian artery induced the least decrease in blood speed and WSS. The results suggest that stent implantation can improve the hemodynamics of VAOS, while stent struts that had protruded 1 mm into the subclavian artery would result in less thrombogenesis and neointimal hyperplasia and most likely decrease the risk of ISR.

CHRONIC OBSTRUCTIVE PULMONARY DISEASE AND ARTERIAL HYPERTENSION: VASCULAR WALL AS THE TARGET ORGAN IN COMORBID PATIENTS

OpenAIRE

N. A. Karoli; A. P. Rebrov

2017-01-01

Studies of endothelial dysfunction in patients with respiratory diseases have become relevant in recent years. Perhaps endothelial dysfunction and high arterial stiffness bind bronchopulmonary and cardiovascular diseases.Aim. To reveal features of disturbances of arterial wall vasoregulatory function in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in the presence and absence of arterial hypertension (HT).Material and methods. The study included 50 patients with COPD with normal ...

Adenosine concentration in the porcine coronary artery wall and A2A receptor involvement in hypoxia-induced vasodilatation.

Science.gov (United States)

Frøbert, Ole; Haink, Gesine; Simonsen, Ulf; Gravholt, Claus H; Levin, Max; Deussen, Andreas

2006-01-15

We tested whether hypoxia-induced coronary artery dilatation could be mediated by an increase in adenosine concentration within the coronary artery wall or by an increase in adenosine sensitivity. Porcine left anterior descendent coronary arteries, precontracted with prostaglandin F(2alpha) (10(-5) M), were mounted in a pressure myograph and microdialysis catheters were inserted into the tunica media. Dialysate adenosine concentrations were analysed by HPLC. Glucose, lactate and pyruvate were measured by an automated spectrophotometric kinetic enzymatic analyser. The exchange fraction of [(14)C]adenosine over the microdialysis membrane increased from 0.32 +/- 0.02 to 0.46 +/- 0.02 (n = 4, P lactate/pyruvate ratio was significantly increased in hypoxic arteries but did not correlate with adenosine concentration. We conclude that hypoxia-induced coronary artery dilatation is not mediated by increased adenosine produced within the artery wall but might be facilitated by increased adenosine sensitivity at the A(2A) receptor level.

CARDIAC TRANSPLANT REJECTION AND NON-INVASIVE COMON CAROTID ARTERY WALL FUNCTIONAL INDICES

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

A. O. Shevchenko

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Allograft rejection would entail an increase in certain blood biomarkers and active substances derived from activated inflammatory cells which could influence entire vascular endothelial function and deteriorate arterial wall stiffness. We propose that carotid wall functional indices measured with non-invasive ultrasound could we valuable markers of the subclinical cardiac allograft rejection. Aim. Our goal was to analyze the clinical utility of functional common carotid wall (CCW variables measured with high-resolution Doppler ultrasound as a non-invasive screening tool for allograft rejection in cardiac transplant patients (pts. Methods. One hundred and seventy one pts included 93 cardiac recipients, 30 dilated cardiomyopathy waiting list pts, and 48 stable coronary artery disease (SCAD pts without decompensated heart failure were included. Along with resistive index (Ri, pulsative index (Pi, and CCW intima-media thickness (IMT, CCW rigidity index (iRIG was estimated using empirical equation. Non-invasive evaluation was performed in cardiac transplant recipients prior the endomyo- cardial biopsy. Results. Neither of Ri, Pi, or CCW IMT were different in studied subgroups. iRIG was signifi- cantly lower in SCAD pts when compared to the dilated cardiomyopathy subgroup. The later had similar values with cardiac transplant recipients without rejection. Antibody-mediated and cellular rejection were found in 22 (23.7% and 17 (18.3% cardiac recipients, respectively. Mean iRIG in pts without rejection was significantly lower in comparison to antibody-mediated rejection and cell-mediated (5514.7 ± 2404.0 vs 11856.1 ± 6643.5 and 16071.9 ± 10029.1 cm/sec2, respectively, p = 0.001. Area under ROC for iRIG was 0.90 ± 0.03 units2. Analysis showed that iRIG values above estimated treshold 7172 cm/sec2 suggested relative risk of any type of rejection 17.7 (95%CI = 6.3–49.9 sensitivity 80.5%, specificity – 81.1%, negative predictive value – 84

Dynamic exercise enhances regional cerebral artery mean flow velocity

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Linkis, P; Jørgensen, L G; Olesen, H L

1995-01-01

Dynamic exercise enhances regional cerebral artery mean flow velocity. J. Appl. Physiol. 78(1): 12-16, 1995.--Anterior (ACA) and middle (MCA) cerebral artery mean flow velocities (Vmean) and pulsatility indexes were determined using transcranial Doppler in 14 subjects during dynamic exercise afte...

Unexpected arterial wall and cellular inflammation in patients with rheumatoid arthritis in remission using biological therapy: a cross-sectional study.

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Bernelot Moens, Sophie J; van der Valk, Fleur M; Strang, Aart C; Kroon, Jeffrey; Smits, Loek P; Kneepkens, Eva L; Verberne, Hein J; van Buul, Jaap D; Nurmohamed, Michael T; Stroes, Erik S G

2016-05-21

Increasing numbers of patients (up to 40 %) with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) achieve remission, yet it remains to be elucidated whether this also normalizes their cardiovascular risk. Short-term treatment with TNF inhibitors lowers arterial wall inflammation, but not to levels of healthy controls. We investigated whether RA patients in long-term remission are characterized by normalized inflammatory activity of the arterial wall and if this is dependent on type of medication used (TNF-inhibitor versus nonbiological disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs)). Arterial wall inflammation, bone marrow and splenic activity (index of progenitor cell activity) was assessed with (18)F-fluorodeoxyglucose ((18)F-FDG) positron emission tomography/computed tomography (PET/CT) in RA patients in remission (disease activity score (DAS28) 6 months) and healthy controls. We performed ex vivo characterization of monocytes using flow cytometry and a transendothelial migration assay. Overall, arterial wall inflammation was comparable in RA patients (n = 23) in long-term remission and controls (n = 17). However, RA subjects using current anti-TNF therapy (n = 13, disease activity score 1.98[1.8-2.2]) have an almost 1.2-fold higher (18)F-FDG uptake in the arterial wall compared to those using DMARDs (but with previous anti-TNF therapy) (n = 10, disease activity score 2.24[1.3-2.5]), which seemed to be predominantly explained by longer duration of their rheumatic disease in a multivariate linear regression analysis. This coincided with increased expression of pro-adhesive (CCR2) and migratory (CD11c, CD18) surface markers on monocytes and a concomitant increased migratory capacity. Finally, we found increased activity in bone marrow and spleen in RA patients using anti-TNF therapy compared to those with DMARDs and controls. A subset of patients with RA in clinical remission have activated monocytes and increased inflammation in the arterial wall, despite the use of

Calculation of arterial wall temperature in atherosclerotic arteries: effect of pulsatile flow, arterial geometry, and plaque structure

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Kim Taehong

2007-03-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background This paper presents calculations of the temperature distribution in an atherosclerotic plaque experiencing an inflammatory process; it analyzes the presence of hot spots in the plaque region and their relationship to blood flow, arterial geometry, and inflammatory cell distribution. Determination of the plaque temperature has become an important topic because plaques showing a temperature inhomogeneity have a higher likelihood of rupture. As a result, monitoring plaque temperature and knowing the factors affecting it can help in the prevention of sudden rupture. Methods The transient temperature profile in inflamed atherosclerotic plaques is calculated by solving an energy equation and the Navier-Stokes equations in 2D idealized arterial models of a bending artery and an arterial bifurcation. For obtaining the numerical solution, the commercial package COMSOL 3.2 was used. The calculations correspond to a parametric study where arterial type and size, as well as plaque geometry and composition, are varied. These calculations are used to analyze the contribution of different factors affecting arterial wall temperature measurements. The main factors considered are the metabolic heat production of inflammatory cells, atherosclerotic plaque length lp, inflammatory cell layer length lmp, and inflammatory cell layer thickness dmp. Results The calculations indicate that the best location to perform the temperature measurement is at the back region of the plaque (0.5 ≤ l/lp ≤ 0.7. The location of the maximum temperature, or hot spot, at the plaque surface can move during the cardiac cycle depending on the arterial geometry and is a direct result of the blood flow pattern. For the bending artery, the hot spot moves 0.6 millimeters along the longitudinal direction; for the arterial bifurcation, the hot spot is concentrated at a single location due to the flow recirculation observed at both ends of the plaque. Focusing on the

Investigation of the mechanism for penetration of low density lipoprotein into the arterial wall

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Glukhova, O. E.; Zyktin, A. A.; Slepchenkov, M. M.

2018-02-01

Currently, the pathology of the cardiovascular system is an extremely urgent problem of fundamental and clinical medicine. These diseases are caused, mainly, by atherosclerotic changes in the wall of blood vessels. The predominant role in the development of atherosclerosis is attributed to the penetration of various kinds of lipoproteins into the arterial intima. In this paper, we in silico investigated the dynamics of the penetration of low density lipoprotein (LDL) through the intercellular gap using molecular modeling methods. The simulation was carried out in the GROMACS software package using a coarse-grained MARTINI model. During investigation we carried out the LDL self-assembly for the first time. The coarse-grained model of LDL was collected from the following molecules: POPC (phosphatidylcholine) - 630 molecules, LPC (lysophosphatidylcholine) - 80 molecules CHOL (cholesterol) - 600 molecules CHYO (cholesteryl oleate) - 1600 molecules TOG (glycerol trioleate) 180 Molecules. The coarse-grained model of the intercellular endothelial gap was based on a model of lipid bilayer consisting of DPPC phospholipids and cholesterol in a percentage ratio of 70% and 30%, respectively. Based on the obtained results, we can predict the mechanism of LDL diffusion. Lipoproteins can be deformed so as to pass through narrow gaps. Our investigations open the way for the research of the behavior dynamics of LDL moving with the blood flow rate when interacting with the intercellular gaps of the endothelial layer of the vessel inner wall.

Integration of a capacitive pressure sensing system into the outer catheter wall for coronary artery FFR measurements

Science.gov (United States)

Stam, Frank; Kuisma, Heikki; Gao, Feng; Saarilahti, Jaakko; Gomes Martins, David; Kärkkäinen, Anu; Marrinan, Brendan; Pintal, Sebastian

2017-05-01

The deadliest disease in the world is coronary artery disease (CAD), which is related to a narrowing (stenosis) of blood vessels due to fatty deposits, plaque, on the arterial walls. The level of stenosis in the coronary arteries can be assessed by Fractional Flow Reserve (FFR) measurements. This involves determining the ratio between the maximum achievable blood flow in a diseased coronary artery and the theoretical maximum flow in a normal coronary artery. The blood flow is represented by a pressure drop, thus a pressure wire or pressure sensor integrated in a catheter can be used to calculate the ratio between the coronary pressure distal to the stenosis and the normal coronary pressure. A 2 Fr (0.67mm) outer diameter catheter was used, which required a high level of microelectronics miniaturisation to fit a pressure sensing system into the outer wall. The catheter has an eccentric guidewire lumen with a diameter of 0.43mm, which implies that the thickest catheter wall section provides less than 210 microns height for flex assembly integration consisting of two dies, a capacitive MEMS pressure sensor and an ASIC. In order to achieve this a very thin circuit flex was used, and the two chips were thinned down to 75 microns and flip chip mounted face down on the flex. Many challenges were involved in obtaining a flex layout that could wrap into a small tube without getting the dies damaged, while still maintaining enough flexibility for the catheter to navigate the arterial system.

Model tests on dynamic performance of RC shear walls

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nagashima, Toshio; Shibata, Akenori; Inoue, Norio; Muroi, Kazuo.

1991-01-01

For the inelastic dynamic response analysis of a reactor building subjected to earthquakes, it is essentially important to properly evaluate its restoring force characteristics under dynamic loading condition and its damping performance. Reinforced concrete shear walls are the main structural members of a reactor building, and dominate its seismic behavior. In order to obtain the basic information on the dynamic restoring force characteristics and damping performance of shear walls, the dynamic test using a large shaking table, static displacement control test and the pseudo-dynamic test on the models of a shear wall were conducted. In the dynamic test, four specimens were tested on a large shaking table. In the static test, four specimens were tested, and in the pseudo-dynamic test, three specimens were tested. These tests are outlined. The results of these tests were compared, placing emphasis on the restoring force characteristics and damping performance of the RC wall models. The strength was higher in the dynamic test models than in the static test models mainly due to the effect of loading rate. (K.I.)

Accurate evaluation of viscoelasticity of radial artery wall during flow-mediated dilation in ultrasound measurement

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Sakai, Yasumasa; Taki, Hirofumi; Kanai, Hiroshi

2016-07-01

In our previous study, the viscoelasticity of the radial artery wall was estimated to diagnose endothelial dysfunction using a high-frequency (22 MHz) ultrasound device. In the present study, we employed a commercial ultrasound device (7.5 MHz) and estimated the viscoelasticity using arterial pressure and diameter, both of which were measured at the same position. In a phantom experiment, the proposed method successfully estimated the elasticity and viscosity of the phantom with errors of 1.8 and 30.3%, respectively. In an in vivo measurement, the transient change in the viscoelasticity was measured for three healthy subjects during flow-mediated dilation (FMD). The proposed method revealed the softening of the arterial wall originating from the FMD reaction within 100 s after avascularization. These results indicate the high performance of the proposed method in evaluating vascular endothelial function just after avascularization, where the function is difficult to be estimated by a conventional FMD measurement.

Learning-based automated segmentation of the carotid artery vessel wall in dual-sequence MRI using subdivision surface fitting.

Science.gov (United States)

Gao, Shan; van 't Klooster, Ronald; Kitslaar, Pieter H; Coolen, Bram F; van den Berg, Alexandra M; Smits, Loek P; Shahzad, Rahil; Shamonin, Denis P; de Koning, Patrick J H; Nederveen, Aart J; van der Geest, Rob J

2017-10-01

The quantification of vessel wall morphology and plaque burden requires vessel segmentation, which is generally performed by manual delineations. The purpose of our work is to develop and evaluate a new 3D model-based approach for carotid artery wall segmentation from dual-sequence MRI. The proposed method segments the lumen and outer wall surfaces including the bifurcation region by fitting a subdivision surface constructed hierarchical-tree model to the image data. In particular, a hybrid segmentation which combines deformable model fitting with boundary classification was applied to extract the lumen surface. The 3D model ensures the correct shape and topology of the carotid artery, while the boundary classification uses combined image information of 3D TOF-MRA and 3D BB-MRI to promote accurate delineation of the lumen boundaries. The proposed algorithm was validated on 25 subjects (48 arteries) including both healthy volunteers and atherosclerotic patients with 30% to 70% carotid stenosis. For both lumen and outer wall border detection, our result shows good agreement between manually and automatically determined contours, with contour-to-contour distance less than 1 pixel as well as Dice overlap greater than 0.87 at all different carotid artery sections. The presented 3D segmentation technique has demonstrated the capability of providing vessel wall delineation for 3D carotid MRI data with high accuracy and limited user interaction. This brings benefits to large-scale patient studies for assessing the effect of pharmacological treatment of atherosclerosis by reducing image analysis time and bias between human observers. © 2017 American Association of Physicists in Medicine.

Dynamic contrast-enhanced ultrasound and transient arterial occlusion for quantification of arterial perfusion reserve in peripheral arterial disease

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Amarteifio, E.; Wormsbecher, S.; Krix, M.; Demirel, S.; Braun, S.; Delorme, S.; Böckler, D.; Kauczor, H.-U.; Weber, M.-A.

2012-01-01

Objective: To quantify muscular micro-perfusion and arterial perfusion reserve in peripheral arterial disease (PAD) with dynamic contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) and transient arterial occlusion. Materials and methods: This study had local institutional review board approval and written informed consent was obtained from all subjects. We examined the dominant lower leg of 40 PAD Fontaine stage IIb patients (mean age, 65 years) and 40 healthy volunteers (mean age, 54 years) with CEUS (7 MHz; MI, 0.28) during continuous intravenous infusion of 4.8 mL microbubbles. Transient arterial occlusion at mid-thigh level simulated physical exercise. With time–CEUS–intensity curves obtained from regions of interest within calf muscles, we derived the maximum CEUS signal after occlusion (max) and its time (t max ), slope to maximum (m), vascular response after occlusion (AUC post ), and analysed accuracy, receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves, and correlations with ankle-brachial index (ABI) and walking distance. Results: All parameters differed in PAD and volunteers (p max was delayed (31.2 ± 13.6 vs. 16.7 ± 8.5 s, p post as optimal parameter combination for diagnosing PAD and therefore impaired arterial perfusion reserve. Conclusions: Dynamic CEUS with transient arterial occlusion quantifies muscular micro-perfusion and arterial perfusion reserve. The technique is accurate to diagnose PAD.

Variable-viscosity thermal hemodynamic slip flow conveying nanoparticles through a permeable-walled composite stenosed artery

Science.gov (United States)

Akbar, Noreen Sher; Tripathi, Dharmendra; Bég, O. Anwar

2017-07-01

This paper presents a mathematical model for simulating viscous, incompressible, steady-state blood flow containing copper nanoparticles and coupled heat transfer through a composite stenosed artery with permeable walls. Wall slip hydrodynamic and also thermal buoyancy effects are included. The artery is simulated as an isotropic elastic tube, following Joshi et al. (2009), and a variable viscosity formulation is employed for the flowing blood. The equations governing the transport phenomena are non-dimensionalized and the resulting boundary value problem is solved analytically in the steady state subject to physically appropriate boundary conditions. Numerical computations are conducted to quantify the effects of relevant hemodynamic, thermophysical and nanoscale parameters emerging in the model on velocity and temperature profiles, wall shear stress, impedance resistance and also streamline distributions. The model may be applicable to drug fate transport modeling with nanoparticle agents and also to the optimized design of nanoscale medical devices for diagnosing stenotic diseases in circulatory systems.

Atheromatous extracranial carotid arteries: CT evaluation correlated with arteriography and pathologic examination

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Leeson, M.D.; Cacayorin, E.D.; Iliya, A.R.; Hodge, C.J.; Culebras, A.; Collins, G.H.; Kieffer, S.A.

1985-01-01

Dynamic, rapid sequence, axial computed tomography (CT) was employed to evaluate the extracranial common and internal carotid arteries in 17 patients with clinical histories suggesting recent or remote ischemia in the territory supplied by the internal carotid artery. The CT findings were correlated with arteriographic observations and with gross and histologic evaluations of endarterectomy specimens. Areas of arterial wall thickening were evaluated on CT scans with regard to both degree of thickening and radiographic density (attenuation). The degree of vessel wall thickening secondary to atheromatous plaque demonstrated on CT scans corresponded closely to the severity of luminal compromise seen on arteriograms. While arteriography provides information regarding the status of the arterial lumen, CT offers the potential of accurate characterization of pathologic changes in the wall of the extracranial carotid arteries in patients with symptoms of cerebral ischemia

Positive association between increased popliteal artery vessel wall thickness and generalized osteoarthritis: is OA also part of the metabolic syndrome?

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kornaat, Peter R.; Sharma, Ruby; Geest, Rob J. van der; Lamb, Hildo J.; Bloem, Johan L.; Watt, Iain; Kloppenburg, Margreet; Hellio le Graverand, Marie-Pierre

2009-01-01

The purpose of the study was to determine if a positive association exists between arterial vessel wall thickness and generalized osteoarthritis (OA). Our hypothesis is that generalized OA is another facet of the metabolic syndrome. The medical ethical review board of our institution approved the study. Written informed consent was obtained from each patient prior to the study. Magnetic resonance (MR) images of the knee were obtained in 42 patients who had been diagnosed with generalized OA at multiple joint sites. Another 27 MR images of the knee were obtained from a matched normal (non-OA) reference population. Vessel wall thickness of the popliteal artery was quantitatively measured by dedicated software. Linear regression models were used to investigate the association between vessel wall thickness and generalized OA. Adjustments were made for age, sex, and body mass index (BMI). Confidence intervals (CI) were computed at the 95% level and a significance level of α = 0.05 was used. Patients in the generalized OA population had a significant higher average vessel wall thickness than persons from the normal reference population (p ≤ α), even when correction was made for sex, age, and BMI. The average vessel wall thickness of the popliteal artery was 1.09 mm in patients with generalized OA, and 0.96 mm in the matched normal reference population. The association found between increased popliteal artery vessel wall thickness and generalized osteoarthritis suggests that generalized OA might be another facet of the metabolic syndrome. (orig.)

Positive association between increased popliteal artery vessel wall thickness and generalized osteoarthritis: is OA also part of the metabolic syndrome?

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kornaat, Peter R.; Sharma, Ruby; Geest, Rob J. van der; Lamb, Hildo J.; Bloem, Johan L.; Watt, Iain [Leiden University Medical Center, Department of Radiology, Leiden (Netherlands); Kloppenburg, Margreet [Leiden University Medical Center, Department of Rheumatology, Leiden (Netherlands); Hellio le Graverand, Marie-Pierre [Pfizer Global Research and Development, New London, CT (United States)

2009-12-15

The purpose of the study was to determine if a positive association exists between arterial vessel wall thickness and generalized osteoarthritis (OA). Our hypothesis is that generalized OA is another facet of the metabolic syndrome. The medical ethical review board of our institution approved the study. Written informed consent was obtained from each patient prior to the study. Magnetic resonance (MR) images of the knee were obtained in 42 patients who had been diagnosed with generalized OA at multiple joint sites. Another 27 MR images of the knee were obtained from a matched normal (non-OA) reference population. Vessel wall thickness of the popliteal artery was quantitatively measured by dedicated software. Linear regression models were used to investigate the association between vessel wall thickness and generalized OA. Adjustments were made for age, sex, and body mass index (BMI). Confidence intervals (CI) were computed at the 95% level and a significance level of {alpha} = 0.05 was used. Patients in the generalized OA population had a significant higher average vessel wall thickness than persons from the normal reference population (p {<=} {alpha}), even when correction was made for sex, age, and BMI. The average vessel wall thickness of the popliteal artery was 1.09 mm in patients with generalized OA, and 0.96 mm in the matched normal reference population. The association found between increased popliteal artery vessel wall thickness and generalized osteoarthritis suggests that generalized OA might be another facet of the metabolic syndrome. (orig.)

Wall Shear Stress Estimation of Thoracic Aortic Aneurysm Using Computational Fluid Dynamics

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J. Febina

2018-01-01

Full Text Available An attempt has been made to evaluate the effects of wall shear stress (WSS on thoracic aortic aneurysm (TAA using Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD. Aneurysm is an excessive localized swelling of the arterial wall due to many physiological factors and it may rupture causing shock or sudden death. The existing imaging modalities such as MRI and CT assist in the visualization of anomalies in internal organs. However, the expected dynamic behaviour of arterial bulge under stressed condition can only be effectively evaluated through mathematical modelling. In this work, a 3D aneurysm model is reconstructed from the CT scan slices and eventually the model is imported to Star CCM+ (Siemens, USA for intensive CFD analysis. The domain is discretized using polyhedral mesh with prism layers to capture the weakening boundary more accurately. When there is flow reversal in TAA as seen in the velocity vector plot, there is a chance of cell damage causing clots. This is because of the shear created in the system due to the flow pattern. It is observed from the proposed mathematical modelling that the deteriorating WSS is an indicator for possible rupture and its value oscillates over a cardiac cycle as well as over different stress conditions. In this model, the vortex formation pattern and flow reversals are also captured. The non-Newtonian model, including a pulsatile flow instead of a steady average flow, does not overpredict the WSS (15.29 Pa compared to 16 Pa for the Newtonian model. Although in a cycle the flow behaviour is laminar-turbulent-laminar (LTL, utilizing the non-Newtonian model along with LTL model also overpredicted the WSS with a value of 20.1 Pa. The numerical study presented here provides good insight of TAA using a systematic approach to numerical modelling and analysis.

Arterial wall mechanics as a function of heart rate: role of vascular smooth muscle

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Salvucci, Fernando Pablo; Schiavone, Jonathan; Craiem, Damian; Barra, Juan Gabriel

2007-01-01

Vascular wall viscoelasticity can be evaluated using a first-order lumped model. This model consists of a spring with elastic constant E and a dashpot with viscous constant η. More importantly, this viscoelastic model can be fitted in-vivo measuring arterial pressure and diameter. The aim of this work is to analyze the influence of heart rate over E and η. In two anesthetized sheep, diameter in thoracic aorta and intravascular pressure has been registered. The right atrium was connected to a programmable stimulator through a pair of pace-maker wires to produce changes in stimulation heart rate (HR) from 80 to 160 bpm. Additionally, local activation of vascular smooth muscle was induced with phenylephrine. After converting pressure and diameter signals into stress and strain respectively, E y η were calculated in control state and during muscle activation. The elastic modulus E did not present significant changes with heart rate. The viscous modulus η decreased 49% with a two-fold acceleration in heart rate from 80 to 160 bpm. However, the product η HR remained stable. The viscous modulus η increased 39% with smooth muscle activation. No significant pressure changes were registered during the experiment. The contractile action of vascular smooth muscle could contribute to increasing arterial wall viscosity. The decrease of η when HR increased might be related to smooth muscle relaxation mediated by endothelium activity, which was stimulated by flow increase. We conclude that HR can modulate arterial wall viscoelasticity through endothelium-dependent mechanisms

Correlation between vortices and wall shear stress in a curved artery model under pulsatile flow conditions

Science.gov (United States)

Cox, Christopher; Plesniak, Michael W.

2017-11-01

One of the most physiologically relevant factors within the cardiovascular system is the wall shear stress. The wall shear stress affects endothelial cells via mechanotransduction and atherosclerotic regions are strongly correlated with curvature and branching in the human vasculature, where the shear stress is both oscillatory and multidirectional. Also, the combined effect of curvature and pulsatility in cardiovascular flows produces unsteady vortices. In this work, our goal is to assess the correlation between multiple vortex pairs and wall shear stress. To accomplish this, we use an in-house high-order flux reconstruction Navier-Stokes solver to simulate pulsatile flow of a Newtonian blood-analog fluid through a rigid 180° curved artery model. We use a physiologically relevant flow rate and generate results using both fully developed and uniform entrance conditions, the latter motivated by the fact that flow upstream to a curved artery may not be fully developed. Under these two inflow conditions, we characterize the evolution of various vortex pairs and their subsequent effect on several wall shear stress metrics. Supported by GW Center for Biomimetics and Bioinspired Engineering.

Serum carotenoids reduce progression of early atherosclerosis in the carotid artery wall among Eastern Finnish men.

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Jouni Karppi

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Several previous epidemiologic studies have shown that high blood levels of carotenoids may be protective against early atherosclerosis, but results have been inconsistent. We assessed the association between atherosclerotic progression, measured by intima-media thickness of the common carotid artery wall, and serum levels of carotenoids. METHODS: We studied the effect of carotenoids on progression of early atherosclerosis in a population-based study. The association between concentrations of serum carotenoids, and intima-media thickness of the common carotid artery wall was explored in 840 middle-aged men (aged 46-65 years from Eastern Finland. Ultrasonography of the common carotid arteries were performed at baseline and 7-year follow-up. Serum levels of carotenoids were analyzed at baseline. Changes in mean and maximum intima media thickness of carotid artery wall were related to baseline serum carotenoid levels in covariance analyses adjusted for covariates. RESULTS: In a covariance analysis with adjustment for age, ultrasound sonographer, maximum intima media thickness, examination year, body mass index, systolic blood pressure, smoking, physical activity, serum LDL cholesterol, family history of coronary heart disease, antihypertensive medication and serum high sensitivity C-reactive protein, 7-year change in maximum intima media thickness was inversely associated with lycopene (p = 0.005, α-carotene (p = 0.002 and β-carotene (p = 0.019, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The present study shows that high serum concentrations of carotenoids may be protective against early atherosclerosis.

Circumferential targeted renal sympathetic nerve denervation with preservation of the renal arterial wall using intra-luminal ultrasound

Science.gov (United States)

Roth, Austin; Coleman, Leslie; Sakakura, Kenichi; Ladich, Elena; Virmani, Renu

2015-03-01

An intra-luminal ultrasound catheter system (ReCor Medical's Paradise System) has been developed to provide circumferential denervation of the renal sympathetic nerves, while preserving the renal arterial intimal and medial layers, in order to treat hypertension. The Paradise System features a cylindrical non-focused ultrasound transducer centered within a balloon that circulates cooling fluid and that outputs a uniform circumferential energy pattern designed to ablate tissues located 1-6 mm from the arterial wall and protect tissues within 1 mm. RF power and cooling flow rate are controlled by the Paradise Generator which can energize transducers in the 8.5-9.5 MHz frequency range. Computer simulations and tissue-mimicking phantom models were used to develop the proper power, cooling flow rate and sonication duration settings to provide consistent tissue ablation for renal arteries ranging from 5-8 mm in diameter. The modulation of these three parameters allows for control over the near-field (border of lesion closest to arterial wall) and far-field (border of lesion farthest from arterial wall, consisting of the adventitial and peri-adventitial spaces) depths of the tissue lesion formed by the absorption of ultrasonic energy and conduction of heat. Porcine studies have confirmed the safety (protected intimal and medial layers) and effectiveness (ablation of 1-6 mm region) of the system and provided near-field and far-field depth data to correlate with bench and computer simulation models. The safety and effectiveness of the Paradise System, developed through computer model, bench and in vivo studies, has been demonstrated in human clinical studies.

Quantifying [{sup 18}F]fluorodeoxyglucose uptake in the arterial wall: the effects of dual time-point imaging and partial volume effect correction

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Blomberg, Bjoern A. [University Medical Center Utrecht, Department of Radiology, Utrecht (Netherlands); Odense University Hospital, Department of Nuclear Medicine, Odense (Denmark); Bashyam, Arjun; Ramachandran, Abhinay; Gholami, Saeid; Houshmand, Sina; Salavati, Ali; Werner, Tom; Alavi, Abass [Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, Department of Radiology, Philadelphia, PA (United States); Zaidi, Habib [Geneva University Hospital, Division of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging, Geneva (Switzerland); University of Groningen, Department of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen (Netherlands)

2015-08-15

The human arterial wall is smaller than the spatial resolution of current positron emission tomographs. Therefore, partial volume effects should be considered when quantifying arterial wall {sup 18}F-FDG uptake. We evaluated the impact of a novel method for partial volume effect (PVE) correction with contrast-enhanced CT (CECT) assistance on quantification of arterial wall {sup 18}F-FDG uptake at different imaging time-points. Ten subjects were assessed by CECT imaging and dual time-point PET/CT imaging at approximately 60 and 180 min after {sup 18}F-FDG administration. For both time-points, uptake of {sup 18}F-FDG was determined in the aortic wall by calculating the blood pool-corrected maximum standardized uptake value (cSUV{sub MAX}) and cSUV{sub MEAN}. The PVE-corrected SUV{sub MEAN} (pvcSUV{sub MEAN}) was also calculated using {sup 18}F-FDG PET/CT and CECT images. Finally, corresponding target-to-background ratios (TBR) were calculated. At 60 min, pvcSUV{sub MEAN} was on average 3.1 times greater than cSUV{sub MAX} (P <.0001) and 8.5 times greater than cSUV{sub MEAN} (P <.0001). At 180 min, pvcSUV{sub MEAN} was on average 2.6 times greater than cSUV{sub MAX} (P <.0001) and 6.6 times greater than cSUV{sub MEAN} (P <.0001). This study demonstrated that CECT-assisted PVE correction significantly influences quantification of arterial wall {sup 18}F-FDG uptake. Therefore, partial volume effects should be considered when quantifying arterial wall {sup 18}F-FDG uptake with PET. (orig.)

Glycemic control in type 2 diabetes mellitus prevents coronary arterial wall infection

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Morteza Izadi

2014-05-01

Full Text Available BACKGROUND: Diabetes mellitus (DM is a very well-known risk factor for development of atherosclerosis, and it has been hypothesized that poor glycemic control and hyperglycemia plays a major role in this process. In the current study, we aimed to evaluate the associates of poor glycemic control in Iranian patients who have already undergone coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG, with especial focus on the inhabitation of infectious agents within the coronary arterial wall. METHODS: In January 2010, 52 consecutive patients with type 2 DM who undergone CABG at the Department of Cardiovascular Surgery of Baqiyatallah University of Medical Sciences (Tehran, Iran were included into this cross-sectional study and biopsy specimens from their coronary plaques were taken and analyzed by polymerase chain reaction (PCR methods for detecting Helicobacter species, cytomegalovirus (CMV and Chlamydia pneumoniae, and their potential relation to the glycemic control status in these patients. RESULTS: Compared to that in diabetic patients with mean fasting blood sugar (FBS levels FBS < 126, atherosclerotic lesions in type 2 diabetic patients with poor glycemic control (FBS > 126 were significantly more likely to be positive for CMV PCR test (41% vs. 9%, respectively; P = 0.05. In laboratorial test results, mean triglyceride level was significantly higher among patients of poor glycemic control (168 ± 89 vs. 222 ± 125 mg/dl, respectively; P = 0.033. Hypertension was also significantly more prevalent in this population (73% vs. 36%, respectively; P = 0.034. CONCLUSION: Type 2 diabetic patients with poor glycemic control can be at higher risk for developing CMV infection in their coronary arterial wall, which can promote atherosclerosis formation process in this patient population. According to the findings of this study, we recommend better control of serum glucose levels in type 2 diabetic patients to prevent formation/progression of atherosclerosis.   Keywords

Dynamics of strings between walls

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Eto, Minoru; Fujimori, Toshiaki; Nagashima, Takayuki; Nitta, Muneto; Ohashi, Keisuke; Sakai, Norisuke

2009-01-01

Configurations of vortex strings stretched between or ending on domain walls were previously found to be 1/4 Bogomol'nyi-Prasad-Sommerfield (BPS) states in N=2 supersymmetric gauge theories in 3+1 dimensions. Among zero modes of string positions, the center of mass of strings in each region between two adjacent domain walls is shown to be non-normalizable whereas the rests are normalizable. We study dynamics of vortex strings stretched between separated domain walls by using two methods, the moduli space (geodesic) approximation of full 1/4 BPS states and the charged particle approximation for string end points in the wall effective action. In the first method we explicitly obtain the effective Lagrangian in the strong coupling limit, which is written in terms of hypergeometric functions, and find the 90 deg. scattering for head-on collision. In the second method the domain wall effective action is assumed to be U(1) N gauge theory, and we find a good agreement between two methods for well-separated strings.

Assessment of arterial wall enhancement for differentiation of parent artery disease from small artery disease: Comparison between histogram analysis and visual analysis on 3 dimensional contrast-enhanced T1-weighted turbo spin echo MR images at 3T

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jang, Jin Hee; Kim, Tae Won; Hwang, Eo Jin; Choi, Hyun Seok; Koo, Ja Seung; Shin, Yong Sam; Jung, So Lyung; Ahn, Kook Jin; Kim, Bum Soo

2017-01-01

The purpose of this study was to compare the histogram analysis and visual scores in 3T MRI assessment of middle cerebral arterial wall enhancement in patients with acute stroke, for the differentiation of parent artery disease (PAD) from small artery disease (SAD). Among the 82 consecutive patients in a tertiary hospital for one year, 25 patients with acute infarcts in middle cerebral artery (MCA) territory were included in this study including 15 patients with PAD and 10 patients with SAD. Three-dimensional contrast-enhanced T1-weighted turbo spin echo MR images with black-blood preparation at 3T were analyzed both qualitatively and quantitatively. The degree of MCA stenosis, and visual and histogram assessments on MCA wall enhancement were evaluated. A statistical analysis was performed to compare diagnostic accuracy between qualitative and quantitative metrics. The degree of stenosis, visual enhancement score, geometric mean (GM), and the 90th percentile (90P) value from the histogram analysis were significantly higher in PAD than in SAD (p = 0.006 for stenosis, < 0.001 for others). The receiver operating characteristic curve area of GM and 90P were 1 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.86-1.00). A histogram analysis of a relevant arterial wall enhancement allows differentiation between PAD and SAD in patients with acute stroke within the MCA territory

Assessment of arterial wall enhancement for differentiation of parent artery disease from small artery disease: Comparison between histogram analysis and visual analysis on 3 dimensional contrast-enhanced T1-weighted turbo spin echo MR images at 3T

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Jang, Jin Hee; Kim, Tae Won; Hwang, Eo Jin; Choi, Hyun Seok; Koo, Ja Seung; Shin, Yong Sam; Jung, So Lyung; Ahn, Kook Jin; Kim, Bum Soo [College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

2017-04-15

The purpose of this study was to compare the histogram analysis and visual scores in 3T MRI assessment of middle cerebral arterial wall enhancement in patients with acute stroke, for the differentiation of parent artery disease (PAD) from small artery disease (SAD). Among the 82 consecutive patients in a tertiary hospital for one year, 25 patients with acute infarcts in middle cerebral artery (MCA) territory were included in this study including 15 patients with PAD and 10 patients with SAD. Three-dimensional contrast-enhanced T1-weighted turbo spin echo MR images with black-blood preparation at 3T were analyzed both qualitatively and quantitatively. The degree of MCA stenosis, and visual and histogram assessments on MCA wall enhancement were evaluated. A statistical analysis was performed to compare diagnostic accuracy between qualitative and quantitative metrics. The degree of stenosis, visual enhancement score, geometric mean (GM), and the 90th percentile (90P) value from the histogram analysis were significantly higher in PAD than in SAD (p = 0.006 for stenosis, < 0.001 for others). The receiver operating characteristic curve area of GM and 90P were 1 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.86-1.00). A histogram analysis of a relevant arterial wall enhancement allows differentiation between PAD and SAD in patients with acute stroke within the MCA territory.

Hemodynamics Modeling and Simulation of Anterior Communicating Artery Aneurysms

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Jianjun Li

2014-07-01

Full Text Available It is a general agreement that hemodynamics plays very important role in the initiation, growth, and rupture of cerebral aneurysms and hemodynamics in the anterior communicating artery aneurysms is considered the most complex in all cerebral aneurysms and it is difficult to find some reasonable relationship between the hemodynamics parameters and the rupture risk. In this paper, the 3D geometries of four anterior communicating artery aneurysms were generated from the CTA data and the computational models with bilateral feeding arteries for the four aneurysms were constructed. The blood flow was simulated by computational fluid dynamics software and the hemodynamics parameters such as velocity, wall shear stress, and oscillatory shear index were calculated. The following results were observed: one of the four models only needs the left feeding artery; the max normalized wall shear stress locates at the aneurysmal neck of the largest aneurysm; the max oscillatory shear index locates at the aneurysmal sac of the largest aneurysm. The conclusion was drawn that the anterior communicating artery aneurysm has higher rupture risk from the hemodynamics viewpoint if the max wall shear stress locates at the neck and the max oscillatory shear index locates at the dome.

Automatic detection of the carotid artery boundary on cross-sectional MR image sequences using a circle model guided dynamic programming

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Brambs Hans

2011-04-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Systematic aerobe training has positive effects on the compliance of dedicated arterial walls. The adaptations of the arterial structure and function are associated with the blood flow-induced changes of the wall shear stress which induced vascular remodelling via nitric oxide delivered from the endothelial cell. In order to assess functional changes of the common carotid artery over time in these processes, a precise measurement technique is necessary. Before this study, a reliable, precise, and quick method to perform this work is not present. Methods We propose a fully automated algorithm to analyze the cross-sectional area of the carotid artery in MR image sequences. It contains two phases: (1 position detection of the carotid artery, (2 accurate boundary identification of the carotid artery. In the first phase, we use intensity, area size and shape as features to discriminate the carotid artery from other tissues and vessels. In the second phase, the directional gradient, Hough transform, and circle model guided dynamic programming are used to identify the boundary accurately. Results We test the system stability using contrast degraded images (contrast resolutions range from 50% to 90%. The unsigned error ranges from 2.86% ± 2.24% to 3.03% ± 2.40%. The test of noise degraded images (SNRs range from 16 to 20 dB shows the unsigned error ranging from 2.63% ± 2.06% to 3.12% ± 2.11%. The test of raw images has an unsigned error 2.56% ± 2.10% compared to the manual tracings. Conclusions We have proposed an automated system which is able to detect carotid artery cross sectional boundary in MRI sequences during heart cycles. The accuracy reaches 2.56% ± 2.10% compared to the manual tracings. The system is stable, reliable and results are reproducible.

[Effect of various types of antihypertensive therapy on elasticity of arterial wall in elderly patients with hypertensive disease and nonvalvular atrial fibrillation].

Science.gov (United States)

Shevelev, V I; Kanorskiĭ, S G

2012-01-01

Basing on the data of ultrasound study we compared effects of various antihypertensive therapies on elastic properties of common carotid arteries and the thoracic aorta in 133 patients aged 65-80 years with nonvalvular atrial fibrillation (AF). The use of perindopril, lercanidipin, valsartan and its combination with rosuvastatin was associated with elevation of the distensibility index of common carotid artery and lowering of coefficient of stiffness of aortic wall compared with the initial state. Combination of valsartan (80-160 mg/day) with rosuvastatin 10 (mg/day) produced most pronounced effect on compliance of vascular wall compared with other variants of treatment. Combination of valsartan and rosuvastatin can be considered an optimal strategy of antihypertensive therapy allowing to improve elastic properties of arterial wall in elderly patients with nonvalvular AF.

Elevated uptake of plasma macromolecules by regions of arterial wall predisposed to plaque instability in a mouse model.

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Zahra Mohri

Full Text Available Atherosclerosis may be triggered by an elevated net transport of lipid-carrying macromolecules from plasma into the arterial wall. We hypothesised that whether lesions are of the thin-cap fibroatheroma (TCFA type or are less fatty and more fibrous depends on the degree of elevation of transport, with greater uptake leading to the former. We further hypothesised that the degree of elevation can depend on haemodynamic wall shear stress characteristics and nitric oxide synthesis. Placing a tapered cuff around the carotid artery of apolipoprotein E -/- mice modifies patterns of shear stress and eNOS expression, and triggers lesion development at the upstream and downstream cuff margins; upstream but not downstream lesions resemble the TCFA. We measured wall uptake of a macromolecular tracer in the carotid artery of C57bl/6 mice after cuff placement. Uptake was elevated in the regions that develop lesions in hyperlipidaemic mice and was significantly more elevated where plaques of the TCFA type develop. Computational simulations and effects of reversing the cuff orientation indicated a role for solid as well as fluid mechanical stresses. Inhibiting NO synthesis abolished the difference in uptake between the upstream and downstream sites. The data support the hypothesis that excessively elevated wall uptake of plasma macromolecules initiates the development of the TCFA, suggest that such uptake can result from solid and fluid mechanical stresses, and are consistent with a role for NO synthesis. Modification of wall transport properties might form the basis of novel methods for reducing plaque rupture.

The Dynamic Similitude Design Method of Thin Walled Structures and Experimental Validation

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Zhong Luo

2016-01-01

Full Text Available For the applicability of dynamic similitude models of thin walled structures, such as engine blades, turbine discs, and cylindrical shells, the dynamic similitude design of typical thin walled structures is investigated. The governing equation of typical thin walled structures is firstly unified, which guides to establishing dynamic scaling laws of typical thin walled structures. Based on the governing equation, geometrically complete scaling law of the typical thin walled structure is derived. In order to determine accurate distorted scaling laws of typical thin walled structures, three principles are proposed and theoretically proved by combining the sensitivity analysis and governing equation. Taking the thin walled annular plate as an example, geometrically complete and distorted scaling laws can be obtained based on the principles of determining dynamic scaling laws. Furthermore, the previous five orders’ accurate distorted scaling laws of thin walled annular plates are presented and numerically validated. Finally, the effectiveness of the similitude design method is validated by experimental annular plates.

Removal of arterial wall calcifications in CT angiography by local subtraction

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Straten, Marcel van; Venema, Henk W.; Streekstra, Geert J.; Reekers, Jim A.; Heeten, Gerard J. den; Grimbergen, Cornelis A.

2003-01-01

CT Angiography (CTA) is an established technique for the minimally invasive imaging of arteries. The technique of maximum intensity projection (MIP) is often used to get a comprehensive overview of the vascular anatomy. On a MIP, however, arterial wall calcifications may hinder the visualization of the arterial lumen. These calcifications are in direct contact with the contrast-enhanced blood, which makes removal difficult. We present a local subtraction method for the automatic removal of these calcifications. In our approach a second CT scan has to be made, prior to contrast injection. The calcifications in both scans are registered prior to subtraction to compensate for displacements in between the two scans. Local subtraction results are compared with results obtained by thresholding. The method was tested in a phantom and with data from four patients. The phantom represented an artery with different types of stenosis. Data were used from patients for which CTA of the renal arteries was performed. For two patients the electrocardiogram (ECG) was recorded during the CTA examination, making retrospective cardiac gated reconstructions possible. Both the phantom and the patient study showed that the local subtraction method is capable of removing calcifications and visualizing the residual lumen. In the patient study it appeared that some artifacts remained for higher pitch values. We conclude that the local subtraction method is less subjective and more accurate than thresholding. Best results are obtained by use of a small pitch, at the expense of the volume covered during a single breath hold

A dynamical model for plant cell wall architecture formation.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Mulder, B.M.; Emons, A.M.C.

2001-01-01

We discuss a dynamical mathematical model to explain cell wall architecture in plant cells. The highly regular textures observed in cell walls reflect the spatial organisation of the cellulose microfibrils (CMFs), the most important structural component of cell walls. Based on a geometrical theory

Intracranial arterial aneurysm vasculopathies: targeting the outer vessel wall

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Krings, Timo; Piske, Ronie L.; Lasjaunias, Pierre L.

2005-01-01

The pathogenesis of intracranial arterial aneurysms (AA) remains unclear, despite their clinical importance. An improved understanding of this disease is important in choosing therapeutic options. In addition to the ''classical'' berry-type aneurysm, there are various other types of intracranial AA such as infectious, dissecting or giant, partially-thrombosed aneurysms. From the clinician's perspective, the hypothesis that some of these intracranial AA might be due to abluminal factors has been proposed for several years. Indeed, this hypothesis and the empirical use of anti-inflammatory drugs in giant intracranial aneurysms have been confirmed by recent studies reporting that an enzyme involved in the inflammatory cascade (5-lipoxygenase or 5-LO) promotes the pathogenesis of specific aneurysms in humans. 5-LO generates different forms of leukotrienes which are potent mediators of inflammation. Adventitial inflammation leads to a weakening of the media from the abluminal part of the vessel wall due to the release of proinflammatory factors that invade the media, thereby degrading the extracellular matrix, the elastic lamina of the vascular wall, and, finally, the integrity of the vessel lumen. This in turn results in a dilation of the vessel and aneurysm formation. Moreover, neoangiogenesis of vasa vasorum is found in close proximity to 5-LO activated macrophages. In addition to this biological cascade, we argue that repeated subadventitial haemorrhages from the new vasa vasorum play an important role in aneurysm pathogenesis, due to a progressive increase in size mediated by the apposition of new layers of intramural haematoma within the vessel wall. Intracranial giant AA can therefore be regarded as a proliferative disease of the vessel wall induced by extravascular activity. (orig.)

Carotid artery wall motion analysis from B-mode ultrasound using adaptive block matching: in silico evaluation and in vivo application

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gastounioti, A; Stoitsis, J S; Nikita, K S; Golemati, S

2013-01-01

Valid risk stratification for carotid atherosclerotic plaques represents a crucial public health issue toward preventing fatal cerebrovascular events. Although motion analysis (MA) provides useful information about arterial wall dynamics, the identification of motion-based risk markers remains a significant challenge. Considering that the ability of a motion estimator (ME) to handle changes in the appearance of motion targets has a major effect on accuracy in MA, we investigated the potential of adaptive block matching (ABM) MEs, which consider changes in image intensities over time. To assure the validity in MA, we optimized and evaluated the ABM MEs in the context of a specially designed in silico framework. ABM FIRF2 , which takes advantage of the periodicity characterizing the arterial wall motion, was the most effective ABM algorithm, yielding a 47% accuracy increase with respect to the conventional block matching. The in vivo application of ABM FIRF2 revealed five potential risk markers: low movement amplitude of the normal part of the wall adjacent to the plaques in the radial (RMA PWL ) and longitudinal (LMA PWL ) directions, high radial motion amplitude of the plaque top surface (RMA PTS ), and high relative movement, expressed in terms of radial strain (RSI PL ) and longitudinal shear strain (LSSI PL ), between plaque top and bottom surfaces. The in vivo results were reproduced by OF LK(WLS) and ABM KF-K2 , MEs previously proposed by the authors and with remarkable in silico performances, thereby reinforcing the clinical values of the markers and the potential of those MEs. Future in vivo studies will elucidate with confidence the full potential of the markers. (paper)

Arabidopsis Regenerating Protoplast: A Powerful Model System for Combining the Proteomics of Cell Wall Proteins and the Visualization of Cell Wall Dynamics

Science.gov (United States)

Yokoyama, Ryusuke; Kuki, Hiroaki; Kuroha, Takeshi; Nishitani, Kazuhiko

2016-01-01

The development of a range of sub-proteomic approaches to the plant cell wall has identified many of the cell wall proteins. However, it remains difficult to elucidate the precise biological role of each protein and the cell wall dynamics driven by their actions. The plant protoplast provides an excellent means not only for characterizing cell wall proteins, but also for visualizing the dynamics of cell wall regeneration, during which cell wall proteins are secreted. It therefore offers a unique opportunity to investigate the de novo construction process of the cell wall. This review deals with sub-proteomic approaches to the plant cell wall through the use of protoplasts, a methodology that will provide the basis for further exploration of cell wall proteins and cell wall dynamics. PMID:28248244

Influence of stenosis on hemodynamic parameters in the realistic left coronary artery under hyperemic conditions.

Science.gov (United States)

Kamangar, Sarfaraz; Badruddin, Irfan Anjum; Badarudin, A; Nik-Ghazali, N; Govindaraju, Kalimuthu; Salman Ahmed, N J; Yunus Khan, T M

2017-03-01

The current study investigates the hyperemic flow effects on heamodynamics parameters such as velocity, wall shear stress in 3D coronary artery models with and without stenosis. The hyperemic flow is used to evaluate the functional significance of stenosis in the current era. Patients CT scan data of having healthy and coronary artery disease was chosen for the reconstruction of 3D coronary artery models. The diseased 3D models of coronary artery shows a narrowing of >50% lumen area. Computational fluid dynamics was performed to simulate the hyperemic flow condition. The results showed that the recirculation zone was observed immediate to the stenosis and highest wall shear stress was observed across the stenosis. The decrease in pressure was found downstream to the stenosis as compared to the coronary artery without stenosis. Our analysis provides an insight into the distribution of wall shear stress and pressure drop, thus improving our understanding of hyperemic flow effect under both conditions.

CHRONIC OBSTRUCTIVE PULMONARY DISEASE AND ARTERIAL HYPERTENSION: VASCULAR WALL AS THE TARGET ORGAN IN COMORBID PATIENTS

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N. A. Karoli

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Studies of endothelial dysfunction in patients with respiratory diseases have become relevant in recent years. Perhaps endothelial dysfunction and high arterial stiffness bind bronchopulmonary and cardiovascular diseases.Aim. To reveal features of disturbances of arterial wall vasoregulatory function in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD in the presence and absence of arterial hypertension (HT.Material and methods. The study included 50 patients with COPD with normal blood pressure (BP and 85 patients with COPD and HT. Control group was presented by 20 practically healthy men comparable in age with COPD patients. Tests with reactive hyperemia (endothelium-dependent dilation and nitroglycerin (endothelium-independent dilation were performed in order to evaluate endothelium function. The number of desquamated endotheliocytes in the blood was determined.Results. In patients with COPD and HT in comparison with COPD patients without HT and healthy individuals more pronounced damages of the vascular wall, endothelium vasoregulatory function disturbances and a tendency to the reduction in endothelium-dependent vasodilation were determined both during COPD exacerbation and remission. These differences were most pronounced during the COPD exacerbation. In patients with COPD and HT in comparison with COPD patients without HT the damage of the vascular wall was more pronounced during the remission and endothelium-dependent dilatation disorder – during the exacerbation. The revealed disorders in patients with COPD and HT were associated with smoking status (r=0.61, p<0.01, severity of bronchial obstruction (r=-0.49, p<0.05, and hypoxemia (r=-0.76, p<0.01. We noted relationships between the parameters of 24-hour BP monitoring and remodeling of the brachial artery (r=0.34, p<0.05, endothelium lesion (r=0.25, p<0.05, and impairment of its vasoregulating function (r=-0.58, p<0.05. At that, the following parameters were important: the

Diagnosis of bronchiectasis and airway wall thickening in children with cystic fibrosis: Objective airway-artery quantification

NARCIS (Netherlands)

W. Kuo-Kim (WieYing); M. de Bruijne (Marleen); J. Petersen (Jens); K. Nasserinejad (Kazem); Ozturk, H. (Hadiye); Chen, Y. (Yong); A. Perez-Rovira (Adria); H.A.W.M. Tiddens (Harm)

2017-01-01

textabstractObjectives: To quantify airway and artery (AA)-dimensions in cystic fibrosis (CF) and control patients for objective CT diagnosis of bronchiectasis and airway wall thickness (AWT). Methods: Spirometer-guided inspiratory and expiratory CTs of 11 CF and 12 control patients were collected

An experimental study on the effect of fluorouracil of two preparations on target arterial wall

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang Minguang; Zhu Jiwu; Zhou Jianjun; Wu Mengchao; Chen Han

1999-01-01

Objective: To probe into the influence of 5-Fu polyphase liposome and 5-Fu solution injection on a target artery. Methods: Fourteen rabbits were divided into the group A of 5-Fu polyphase liposome and group B of 5-Fu injection. Of 7 cases per group, 5 cases had a femoral artery approach and 2 cases via an ear artery. Angiography and pathological examinations under light microscope of the femoral artery were made 7 days after administration via femoral artery and pathological examination under electron microscope of the ear artery 24 hours after administration via ear artery. Results: In group B, the local narrowing was clearly shown in 4 of 5 cases of femoral arteriography. Denudation and fragmentation of hyperplastic endothelial cells, rupture and discontinuity of internal elastic membrane were seen under light microscope in the stenotic vessels. Fragmentation of endothelial cell membrane, vacuolization of cytoplasm and hazy mitochondrial structures were seen under electron microscope. In group A, femoral arteriography was normal, and only mild degree of exfoliation and hyperplasia of endothelium were seen under light microscope. Integrity of endothelial cell membrane, vacuoles in cytoplasm, swollen mitochondria with visible ridge and irregular nucleus were seen under electron microscope. Conclusions: The stimulation and injury to target arterial wall by 5-Fu polyphase liposome was obviously milder than that of 5-Fu solution injection

Efficacy of double arterial phase dynamic magnetic resonance imaging with the sensitivity encoding technique versus dynamic multidetector-row helical computed tomography for detecting hypervascular hepatocellular carcinoma

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kumano, Seishi; Okada, Masahiro; Murakami, Takamichi; Uemura, Masahiko; Haraikawa, Toyoaki; Hirata, Masaaki; Kikuchi, Keiichi; Mochizuki, Teruhito; Kim, Tonsok

2009-01-01

The aim of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of double arterial phase dynamic magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) with the sensitivity encoding technique (SENSE dynamic MRI) for detection of hypervascular hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in comparison with double arterial phase dynamic multidetector-row helical computed tomography (dynamic MDCT). A total of 28 patients with 66 hypervascular HCCs underwent both double arterial SENSE dynamic MRI and dynamic MDCT. The diagnosis of HCC was based on surgical resection (n=7), biopsy (n=10), or a combination of CT during arterial portography (CTAP), CT during hepatic arteriography (CTA), and/or the 6-month follow-up CT (n=49). Based on alternative-free response receiving operating characteristic (ROC) analysis, the diagnostic performance for detecting HCC was compared between double arterial phase SENSE dynamic MRI and double arterial phase dynamic MDCT. The mean sensitivity, positive predictive value, and mean A Z values for hypervascular HCCs were 72%, 80%, and 0.79, respectively, for SENSE dynamic MRI and 66%, 92%, and 0.78, respectively, for dynamic MDCT. The mean sensitivity for double arterial phase SENSE dynamic MRI was higher than that for double arterial phase dynamic MDCT, but the difference was not statistically significant. Double arterial phase SENSE dynamic MRI is as valuable as double arterial phase dynamic MDCT for detecting hypervascular HCCs. (author)

Dynamics of cylindrical domain walls in smectic C liquid crystals

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stewart, I W; Wigham, E J

2009-01-01

An analysis of the dynamics of cylindrical domain walls in planar aligned samples of smectic C liquid crystals is presented. A circular magnetic field, induced by an electric current, drives a time-dependent reorientation of the corresponding radially dependent director field. Nonlinear approximations to the relevant nonlinear dynamic equation, derived from smectic continuum theory, are solved in a comoving coordinated frame: exact solutions are found for a π-wall and numerical solutions are calculated for π/2-walls. Each calculation begins with an assumed initial state for the director that is a prescribed cylindrical domain wall. Such an initial wall will proceed to expand or contract as its central core propagates radially inwards or outwards, depending on the boundary conditions for the director, the elastic constants, the magnitude of the field and the sign of the magnetic anisotropy of the liquid crystal

New phenotypic aspects of the decidual spiral artery wall during early post-implantation mouse pregnancy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Elia, Artemis; Charalambous, Fotini; Georgiades, Pantelis

2011-01-01

Highlights: ► Spiral artery (SA) wall remodeling (SAR) is ill-defined and clinically important. ► SA muscular phenotype prior to and during SAR in mice is underexplored. ► SA muscular wall consists of contractile and non-contractile components. ► SA wall non-contractile component may be synthetic smooth muscle. ► Timing and extent of SA wall contractile component loss is revealed. -- Abstract: During pregnancy the walls of decidual spiral arteries (SAs) undergo clinically important structural modifications crucial for embryo survival/growth and maternal health. However, the mechanisms of SA remodeling (SAR) are poorly understood. Although an important prerequisite to this understanding is knowledge about the phenotype of SA muscular wall prior to and during the beginning of mouse SAR, this remains largely unexplored and was the main aim of this work. Using histological and immunohistochemical techniques, this study shows for the first time that during early mouse gestation, from embryonic day 7.5 (E7.5) to E10.5, the decidual SA muscular coat is not a homogeneous structure, but consists of two concentric layers. The first is a largely one cell-thick sub-endothelial layer of contractile mural cells (positive for α-smooth muscle actin, calponin and SM22α) with pericyte characteristics (NG2 positive). The second layer is thicker, and evidence is presented that it may be of the synthetic/proliferative smooth muscle phenotype, based on absence (α-smooth muscle actin and calponin) or weak (SM22α) expression of contractile mural cell markers, and presence of synthetic smooth muscle characteristics (expression of non-muscle Myosin heavy chain-IIA and of the cell proliferation marker PCNA). Importantly, immunohistochemistry and morphometrics showed that the contractile mural cell layer although prominent at E7.5–E8.5, becomes drastically reduced by E10.5 and is undetectable by E12.5. In conclusion, this study reveals novel aspects of the decidual SA muscular

Arabidopsis Regenerating Protoplast: A Powerful Model System for Combining the Proteomics of Cell Wall Proteins and the Visualization of Cell Wall Dynamics

OpenAIRE

Yokoyama, Ryusuke; Kuki, Hiroaki; Kuroha, Takeshi; Nishitani, Kazuhiko

2016-01-01

The development of a range of sub-proteomic approaches to the plant cell wall has identified many of the cell wall proteins. However, it remains difficult to elucidate the precise biological role of each protein and the cell wall dynamics driven by their actions. The plant protoplast provides an excellent means not only for characterizing cell wall proteins, but also for visualizing the dynamics of cell wall regeneration, during which cell wall proteins are secreted. It therefore offers a uni...

NONINVASIVE EVALUATION OF VASCULAR WALL STIFFNESSIN HEALTHY ADOLESCENTS, THE RISK FACTORS FOR ARTERIAL HYPERTENSION

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G. P. Filippov

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Objective. To evaluate the main indicators characterizing the rigidity of the vascular wall in healthy ado-lescents with such risk factors (RF for arterial hypertension (AH as a family history on hypertension and smoking. Identify changes in the initial elastic-elastic properties of the arteries at the preclinical stage of development of hypertension.Material and methods. It was formed two groups of comparison. Age studied from 13 to 17 years (mean age (15.00 ± 0.31 years. The first group consisted of 30 healthy adolescents whose parents suffer from hypertension from a young age. The second group consisted of 30 healthy smokers teenager from healthy parents. The control group consisted of 30 healthy adolescents from healthy parents. Determines the basic stiffness of the vascular wall: PWV, CAVI, SAI.Results. A significant in crease in the indicators characterizing the rigidity of the vascular wall in the two comparison groups relative to the control. PWV: 6,89 ± 0,56 (first group, 7.13 ± 0.55 (second group and 5.5 ± 0.41 (control, p < 0.05.L-CAVI: 5,46 ± 0,39 (first group, 5.84 ± 0.61 (second group and 4.32 ± 0.41 (control, p < 0.05.R-CAVI: 5,63 ± 0,39 (first group, 5.89 ± 0.56 (second group and 4.49 ± 0.41(control, p < 0.05. R-AI: 0,89 ± 0,09 (first group, 0.95 ± 0.12 (second group and 0.62 ± 0.1 (control, p < 0.05.Smoking teenagers and adolescents with family history of hypertension, there are changes in the initial stiffness of the vessel wall, which requires the allocation of at-riskfor the development of hypertension and prevention activities at the preclinical stage of development ofthe disease.

Dynamics of one-dimensional domain walls interacting with disorder potential

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Krusin-Elbaum, L.; Shibauchi, T.; Argyle, B.; Gignac, L.; Zabel, T.; Weller, D.

2001-01-01

Dynamics of 1D perpendicular-anisotropy domain walls in a few monolayer-thin Co films is imaged by polar Kerr microscopy. When domain walls, driven by a square-pulsed magnetic fields, travel through a random disordered potential landscape, they display Gaussian-distributed roughness characteristic of this landscape. Average velocity of the domain wall driven by a constant magnetic field strongly depends on a strain field which modifies (increases) the elastic energy of the wall and reduces the wall velocity

Monitoring of arterial wall remodelling in atherosclerotic rabbits with a magnetic resonance imaging contrast agent binding to matrix metalloproteinases

Science.gov (United States)

Hyafil, Fabien; Vucic, Esad; Cornily, Jean-Christophe; Sharma, Rahul; Amirbekian, Vardan; Blackwell, Francis; Lancelot, Eric; Corot, Claire; Fuster, Valentin; Galis, Zorina S.; Feldman, Laurent J.; Fayad, Zahi A.

2011-01-01

Aims P947 is a gadolinium-based magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) contrast agent with high affinity for several matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) involved in arterial wall remodelling. We tested whether the intensity of enhancement detected in vivo in the arterial wall with P947 and MRI correlates with actual tissue MMP-related enzymatic activity measured in a rabbit atherosclerotic model subjected to dietary manipulations. Methods and results Aortas of 15 rabbits in which atherosclerotic lesions were induced by balloon angioplasty and 4 months of hypercholesterolaemic diet were imaged at ‘baseline’ with P947-enhanced MRI. Atherosclerotic rabbits were divided into three groups: five rabbits were sacrificed (‘baseline’ group); five rabbits continued to be fed a lipid-supplemented diet (‘high-fat’ group); and five rabbits were switched from atherogenic to a purified chow diet (‘low-fat’ group). Four months later, a second P947-enhanced MRI was acquired in the 10 remaining rabbits. A significantly lower signal was detected in the aortic wall of rabbits from the ‘low-fat’ group as compared with rabbits from the ‘high-fat’ group (21 ± 6 vs. 46 ± 3%, respectively; P = 0.04). Such differences were not detected with the contrast agent P1135, which lacks the MMP-specific peptide sequence. In addition, the intensity of aortic wall enhancement detected with MRI after injection of P947 strongly correlated with actual MMP-2 gelatinolytic activity measured in corresponding aortic segments using zymography (r = 0.87). Conclusion P947-enhanced MRI can distinguish dietary-induced variations in MMP-related enzymatic activity within plaques in an experimental atherosclerotic model, supporting its utility as a clinical imaging tool for in vivo detection of arterial wall remodelling. PMID:21118852

Molecular Dynamics Analyses on Microscopic Contact Angle - Effect of Wall Atom Configuration

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Takahiro Ito; Yosuke Hirata; Yutaka Kukita

2006-01-01

Boiling or condensing phenomena of liquid on the solid surface is greatly affected by the wetting condition of the liquid to the solid. Although the contact angle is one of the most important parameter to represent the wetting condition, the behavior of the contact angle is not understood well, especially in the dynamic condition. In this study we made molecular dynamics simulations to investigate the microscopic contact angle behavior under several conditions on the numerical density of the wall atoms. In the analyses, when the number density of the wall is lower, the changing rate of the dynamics contact angles for the variation of ΔV was higher than those for the case where the wall density is higher. This is mainly due to the crystallization of the fluid near the wall and subsequent decrease in the slip between the fluid and the wall. The analyses also show that the static contact angle decreases with increase in the number density of the wall. This was mainly induced by the increase in the number density of the wall itself. (authors)

Mathematical modeling of coupled drug and drug-encapsulated nanoparticle transport in patient-specific coronary artery walls

KAUST Repository

Hossain, Shaolie S.

2011-08-20

The majority of heart attacks occur when there is a sudden rupture of atherosclerotic plaque, exposing prothrombotic emboli to coronary blood flow, forming clots that can cause blockages of the arterial lumen. Diseased arteries can be treated with drugs delivered locally to vulnerable plaques. The objective of this work was to develop a computational tool-set to support the design and analysis of a catheter-based nanoparticulate drug delivery system to treat vulnerable plaques and diffuse atherosclerosis. A threedimensional mathematical model of coupled mass transport of drug and drug-encapsulated nanoparticles was developed and solved numerically utilizing isogeometric finite element analysis. Simulations were run on a patient-specific multilayered coronary artery wall segment with a vulnerable plaque and the effect of artery and plaque inhomogeneity was analyzed. The method captured trends observed in local drug delivery and demonstrated potential for optimizing drug design parameters, including delivery location, nanoparticle surface properties, and drug release rate. © Springer-Verlag 2011.

Evaluation of detectability of right inferior phrenic artery root in dynamic CT

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sato, Osamu [Akashi Municipal Hospital, Hyogo (Japan); Kizu, Osamu; Shimizu, Toshihisa; Takahashi, Takeshi; Ohno, Koji; Ohmura, Makoto; Maeda, Tomoho

1995-05-01

We evaluated the detectability of the root of the right inferior phrenic artery in dynamic CT over the entire liver as used for the diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma. The results showed no detection in three cases, poor detection in seven, detection in 12 and good detection in eight. The right inferior phrenic artery could be detected in many cases. Identification was easier in cases with direct branching from the aorta. It can be concluded that for angiographic examination, dynamic CT over the entire liver is useful for catheterization to the right inferior phrenic artery. (author).

Evaluation of detectability of right inferior phrenic artery root in dynamic CT

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sato, Osamu; Kizu, Osamu; Shimizu, Toshihisa; Takahashi, Takeshi; Ohno, Koji; Ohmura, Makoto; Maeda, Tomoho.

1995-01-01

We evaluated the detectability of the root of the right inferior phrenic artery in dynamic CT over the entire liver as used for the diagnosis of hepatocellular carcinoma. The results showed no detection in three cases, poor detection in seven, detection in 12 and good detection in eight. The right inferior phrenic artery could be detected in many cases. Identification was easier in cases with direct branching from the aorta. It can be concluded that for angiographic examination, dynamic CT over the entire liver is useful for catheterization to the right inferior phrenic artery. (author)

Noninvasive detection of coronary artery wall thickening with age in healthy subjects using high resolution MRI with beat-to-beat respiratory motion correction.

Science.gov (United States)

Scott, Andrew D; Keegan, Jennifer; Mohiaddin, Raad H; Firmin, David N

2011-10-01

To demonstrate coronary artery wall thickening with age in a small healthy cohort using a highly efficient, reliable, and reproducible high-resolution MR technique. A 3D cross-sectional MR vessel wall images (0.7 × 0.7 × 3 mm resolution) with retrospective beat-to-beat respiratory motion correction (B2B-RMC) were obtained in the proximal right coronary artery of 21 healthy subjects (age, 22-62 years) with no known cardiovascular disease. Lumen and outer wall (lumen + vessel wall) areas were measured in one central slice from each subject and average wall thickness and wall area/outer wall area ratio (W/OW) calculated. Imaging was successful in 18 (86%) subjects with average respiratory efficiency 99.3 ± 1.7%. Coronary vessel wall thickness and W/OW significantly correlate with subject age, increasing by 0.088 mm and 0.031 per decade respectively (R = 0.53, P = 0.024 and R = 0.48, P = 0.046). No relationship was found between lumen area and vessel wall thickness (P = NS), but outer wall area increased significantly with vessel wall thickness at 19 mm(2) per mm (P = 0.046). This is consistent with outward vessel wall remodeling. Despite the small size of our healthy cohort, using high-resolution MR imaging and B2B-RMC, we have demonstrated increasing coronary vessel wall thickness and W/OW with age. The results obtained are consistent with outward vessel wall remodeling. Copyright © 2011 Wiley-Liss, Inc.

The effect of anatomic differences on the relationship between renal artery and diaphragmatic crus.

Science.gov (United States)

Esen, K; Tok, S; Balci, Yuksel; Apaydin, F D; Kara, E; Uzmansel, D

2018-01-01

The aim of this study is to investigate the effect of anatomic differences on the relationship between renal artery and diaphragmatic crus via the touch of two structures. The study included dynamic computed tomography (CT) scans of 308 patients performed mainly for characterisation of liver and renal masses. Anatomic differences including the thickness of the diaphragmatic crus, the localisation of renal artery ostium at the wall of aorta, the level of renal artery origin with respect to superior mesenteric artery were evaluated. Statistical relationships between renal artery-diaphragmatic crus contact and the anatomic differences were assessed. Thickness of the diaphragmatic crus at the level of renal artery origin exhibited a statistically significant relationship to renal artery-diaphragmatic crus contact at the left (p renal artery origin and renal artery- -diaphragmatic crus contact at the left (p renal artery ostium at the wall of aorta (right side, p = 0.436, left side, p = 0.681) did not demonstrate a relationship to renal artery-diaphragmatic crus contact. Thickness of the diaphragmatic crus and high renal artery origin with respect to superior mesenteric artery are crucial anatomic differences determining the relationship of renal artery and diaphragmatic crus. (Folia Morphol 2018; 77, 1: 22-28).

Modeling of Kidney Hemodynamics: Probability-Based Topology of an Arterial Network

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Postnov, Dmitry D; Marsh, Donald J; Postnov, Dmitry E

2016-01-01

CT) data we develop an algorithm for generating the renal arterial network. We then introduce a mathematical model describing blood flow dynamics and nephron to nephron interaction in the network. The model includes an implementation of electrical signal propagation along a vascular wall. Simulation...

Transmural variation in elastin fiber orientation distribution in the arterial wall.

Science.gov (United States)

Yu, Xunjie; Wang, Yunjie; Zhang, Yanhang

2018-01-01

The complex three-dimensional elastin network is a major load-bearing extracellular matrix (ECM) component of an artery. Despite the reported anisotropic behavior of arterial elastin network, it is usually treated as an isotropic material in constitutive models. Our recent multiphoton microscopy study reported a relatively uniform elastin fiber orientation distribution in porcine thoracic aorta when imaging from the intima side (Chow et al., 2014). However it is questionable whether the fiber orientation distribution obtained from a small depth is representative of the elastin network structure in the arterial wall, especially when developing structure-based constitutive models. To date, the structural basis for the anisotropic mechanical behavior of elastin is still not fully understood. In this study, we examined the transmural variation in elastin fiber orientation distribution in porcine thoracic aorta and its association with elastin anisotropy. Using multi-photon microscopy, we observed that the elastin fibers orientation changes from a relatively uniform distribution in regions close to the luminal surface to a more circumferential distribution in regions that dominate the media, then to a longitudinal distribution in regions close to the outer media. Planar biaxial tensile test was performed to characterize the anisotropic behavior of elastin network. A new structure-based constitutive model of elastin network was developed to incorporate the transmural variation in fiber orientation distribution. The new model well captures the anisotropic mechanical behavior of elastin network under both equi- and nonequi-biaxial loading and showed improvements in both fitting and predicting capabilities when compared to a model that only considers the fiber orientation distribution from the intima side. We submit that the transmural variation in fiber orientation distribution is important in characterizing the anisotropic mechanical behavior of elastin network and

New phenotypic aspects of the decidual spiral artery wall during early post-implantation mouse pregnancy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Elia, Artemis; Charalambous, Fotini [Department of Biological Sciences, University of Cyprus, University Campus, P.O. Box 20537, 1678 Nicosia (Cyprus); Georgiades, Pantelis, E-mail: pgeor@ucy.ac.cy [Department of Biological Sciences, University of Cyprus, University Campus, P.O. Box 20537, 1678 Nicosia (Cyprus)

2011-12-09

Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Spiral artery (SA) wall remodeling (SAR) is ill-defined and clinically important. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer SA muscular phenotype prior to and during SAR in mice is underexplored. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer SA muscular wall consists of contractile and non-contractile components. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer SA wall non-contractile component may be synthetic smooth muscle. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Timing and extent of SA wall contractile component loss is revealed. -- Abstract: During pregnancy the walls of decidual spiral arteries (SAs) undergo clinically important structural modifications crucial for embryo survival/growth and maternal health. However, the mechanisms of SA remodeling (SAR) are poorly understood. Although an important prerequisite to this understanding is knowledge about the phenotype of SA muscular wall prior to and during the beginning of mouse SAR, this remains largely unexplored and was the main aim of this work. Using histological and immunohistochemical techniques, this study shows for the first time that during early mouse gestation, from embryonic day 7.5 (E7.5) to E10.5, the decidual SA muscular coat is not a homogeneous structure, but consists of two concentric layers. The first is a largely one cell-thick sub-endothelial layer of contractile mural cells (positive for {alpha}-smooth muscle actin, calponin and SM22{alpha}) with pericyte characteristics (NG2 positive). The second layer is thicker, and evidence is presented that it may be of the synthetic/proliferative smooth muscle phenotype, based on absence ({alpha}-smooth muscle actin and calponin) or weak (SM22{alpha}) expression of contractile mural cell markers, and presence of synthetic smooth muscle characteristics (expression of non-muscle Myosin heavy chain-IIA and of the cell proliferation marker PCNA). Importantly, immunohistochemistry and morphometrics showed that the contractile mural cell layer although prominent at E7.5-E8

The influence of anatomic variance in the coronary artery on cardiac function with PCI after acute inferior wall myocardial infarction

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zheng Hongming; Feng Jue; Fang Fengning; Wu Heping; Wang Fengqin; Ma Huili

2006-01-01

Objective: To analyze the influence in anatomic variance of coronary artery on function of left and right ventricles after acute inferior myocardial infarction (AIMI) treated with percutaneous coronary intervention therapy (PCI). Methods: Forty-seven inferior AIMI patients were divided into 2 groups: 12 left dominant group [including equipollent case, i.e. inferior wall of left ventricle supplied by left circumflex coronary artery (LCX), right ventricle by right coronary artery (RCA)] and 35 right dominant group (both inferior wall and right ventricle were supplied by RCA). Equilibrium radionuclide angiocardiography (ERNA) and myocardial perfusion imaging (MPI) were used for comparing the influence between different coronary artery flow patterns on biventricular hemodynamics, blood supply and prognosis of PCI after 3 months. Results: Comparison of ventricular function in left and right dominant coronal artery type groups discharged 7- 10 d after PCI, there were differences in left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) [(63.03 ± 5.64)% vs (57.67 ± 7.35)%, P=0.012], peak ejection rate (PER) [(3.52 ± 0.66) end-diastolic volume (EDV)/s vs (2.93 ± 0.73) EDV/s, P =0.011], peak filling rate (PFR) [(2.71 ± 0.88) EDV/s vs (2.11 ± 0.45 ) EDV/s, P=0.004], left free-wall regional ejection fraction [(81.94 ± 20.75)% vs (67.25 ± 16.54)%, P = O.032], and right free-wall regional ejection fraction [(57.86 ± 11.77)% vs (67.83 ± 10.38)%, P=0.012], right ventricular ejection fraction (RVEF) [(37.89 ± 3.86)% vs (41.67 ± 4.81)%, P=0.09]. After 3 months,there was difference only in RVEF [(44.60 ± 5.29)% vs (48.00 ± 3.30)%, P=0.043], but no difference in myocardial perfusion of left ventricle (P=0.357). Conclusions: In acute stage of AIMI right dominant group, there was more severe injury of right ventricle, in convalescent stage most of the right ventricular function resumed. The sustained right ventricular function in part of the patients can be demonstrated by ERNA

A patient-specific virtual stenotic model of the coronary artery to analyze the relationship between fractional flow reserve and wall shear stress.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Kyung Eun; Kim, Gook Tae; Lee, Jeong Sang; Chung, Ju-Hyun; Shin, Eun-Seok; Shim, Eun Bo

2016-11-01

As the stenotic severity of a patient increases, fractional flow reserve (FFR) decreases, whereas the maximum wall shear stress (WSSmax) increases. However, the way in which these values can change according to stenotic severity has not previously been investigated. The aim of this study is to devise a virtual stenosis model to investigate variations in the coronary hemodynamic parameters of patients according to stenotic severity. To simulate coronary hemodynamics, a three-dimensional (3D) coronary artery model of computational fluid dynamics is coupled with a lumped parameter model of the coronary micro-vasculature and venous system. To validate the present method, we first simulated 13 patient-specific models of the coronary arteries and compared the results with those obtained clinically. Then, virtually narrowed coronary arterial models derived from the patient-specific cases were simulated to obtain the WSSmax and FFR values. The variations in FFR and WSSmax against the percentage of diameter stenosis in clinical cases were reproducible by the virtual stenosis models. We also found that the simulated FFR values were linearly correlated with the WSSmax values, but the linear slope varied by patient. We implemented 130 additional virtual models of stenosed coronary arteries based on data from 13 patients and obtained statistically meaningful results that were identical to the large-scale clinical studies. And the slope of the correlation line between FFR and WSSmax may help clinicians to design treatment plans for patients. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Prevention of the Rerupture of Collateral Artery Aneurysms on the Ventricular Wall by Early Surgical Revascularization in Moyamoya Disease: Report of Two Cases and Review of the Literature.

Science.gov (United States)

Kanamori, Fumiaki; Takasu, Syuntaro; Ota, Shinji; Seki, Yukio

2018-01-01

Collateral artery aneurysms are a source of intracranial hemorrhage in moyamoya disease. Several reports have shown that surgical revascularization leads to the obliteration of collateral artery aneurysms. However, its effect on the prevention of rebleeding has not been established, and the optimal timing of the operation remains unclear. The purpose of the present study is to evaluate the effects of surgical revascularization and to investigate the optimal operation timing in patients with moyamoya disease who have ruptured collateral artery aneurysms on the ventricular wall. Two patients with moyamoya disease who presented with intraventricular hemorrhage caused by rupture of collateral artery aneurysms on the wall of the lateral ventricle are presented here. In both cases, the aneurysms reruptured approximately 1 month after the initial hemorrhage. Both patients successfully underwent superficial temporal artery-middle cerebral artery anastomosis combined with indirect bypass in the subacute stage. The aneurysms decreased with the development of collateral circulation through the direct bypasses, and rebleeding did not occur after the surgery. Because ruptured collateral artery aneurysms on the wall of the lateral ventricle in moyamoya disease are prone to rerupture within 1 month, surgical revascularization may be recommended as soon as the patients are stable and able to withstand the operation. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Analysis of haemodynamic disturbance in the atherosclerotic carotid artery using computational fluid dynamics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Birchall, Daniel; Zaman, Azfar; Hacker, Jacob; Davies, Gavin; Mendelow, David

2006-01-01

Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) provides a means for the quantitative analysis of haemodynamic disturbances in vivo, but most work has used phantoms or idealised geometry. Our purpose was to use CFD to analyse flow in carotid atherosclerosis using patient-specific geometry and flow data. Eight atherosclerotic carotid arteries and one healthy control artery were imaged with magnetic resonance angiography (MRA) and duplex ultrasound, and the data used to construct patient-specific computational models used for CFD and wall shear stress (WSS) analysis. There is a progressive change in three-dimensional (3-D) velocity profile and WSS profile with increasing severity of stenosis, characterised by increasing restriction of areas of low WSS, change in oscillation patterns, and progressive rise in WSS within stenoses and downstream jets. Areas of turbulent, retrograde flow and of low WSS are demonstrated in the lee of the stenoses. This study presents the largest CFD analysis of abnormal haemodynamics at the atheromatous carotid bifurcation using patient-specific data and provides the basis for further investigation of causal links between haemodynamic variables and atherogenesis and formation of unstable plaque. We propose that this provides a means for the prospective assessment of relative stroke risk in patients with carotid atherosclerosis. (orig.)

Electromechanical dynamic analysis for the drum driving system of the long-wall shearer

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Changzhao Liu

2015-10-01

Full Text Available The drum driving system is one of the weakest parts of the long-wall shearer, and some methods are also needed to monitor and control the long-wall shearer to adapt to the important trend of unmanned operation in future mining systems. Therefore, it is essential to conduct an electromechanical dynamic analysis for the drum driving system of the long-wall shearer. First, a torsional dynamic model of planetary gears is proposed which is convenient to be connected to the electric motor model for electromechanical dynamic analysis. Next, an electromechanical dynamic model for the drum driving system is constructed including the electric motor, the gear transmission system, and the drum. Then, the electromechanical dynamic characteristics are simulated when the shock loads are acted on the drum driving system. Finally, some advices are proposed for improving the reliability, monitoring the operating state, and choosing the control signals of the long-wall shearer based on the simulation.

Effect of open-label infusion of an apoA-I-containing particle (CER-001) on RCT and artery wall thickness in patients with FHA.

Science.gov (United States)

Kootte, Ruud S; Smits, Loek P; van der Valk, Fleur M; Dasseux, Jean-Louis; Keyserling, Constance H; Barbaras, Ronald; Paolini, John F; Santos, Raul D; van Dijk, Theo H; Dallinga-van Thie, Geesje M; Nederveen, Aart J; Mulder, Willem J M; Hovingh, G Kees; Kastelein, John J P; Groen, Albert K; Stroes, Erik S

2015-03-01

Reverse cholesterol transport (RCT) contributes to the anti-atherogenic effects of HDL. Patients with the orphan disease, familial hypoalphalipoproteinemia (FHA), are characterized by decreased tissue cholesterol removal and an increased atherogenic burden. We performed an open-label uncontrolled proof-of-concept study to evaluate the effect of infusions with a human apoA-I-containing HDL-mimetic particle (CER-001) on RCT and the arterial vessel wall in FHA. Subjects received 20 infusions of CER-001 (8 mg/kg) during 6 months. Efficacy was assessed by measuring (apo)lipoproteins, plasma-mediated cellular cholesterol efflux, fecal sterol excretion (FSE), and carotid artery wall dimension by MRI and artery wall inflammation by (18)F-fluorodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography/computed tomography scans. We included seven FHA patients: HDL-cholesterol (HDL-c), 13.8 [1.8-29.1] mg/dl; apoA-I, 28.7 [7.9-59.1] mg/dl. Following nine infusions in 1 month, apoA-I and HDL-c increased directly after infusion by 27.0 and 16.1 mg/dl (P = 0.018). CER-001 induced a 44% relative increase (P = 0.018) in in vitro cellular cholesterol efflux with a trend toward increased FSE (P = 0.068). After nine infusions of CER-001, carotid mean vessel wall area decreased compared with baseline from 25.0 to 22.8 mm(2) (P = 0.043) and target-to-background ratio from 2.04 to 1.81 (P = 0.046). In FHA-subjects, CER-001 stimulates cholesterol mobilization and reduces artery wall dimension and inflammation, supporting further evaluation of CER-001 in FHA patients. Copyright © 2015 by the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Inc.

Magnetic field effects for copper suspended nanofluid venture through a composite stenosed arteries with permeable wall

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Akbar, Noreen Sher; Butt, Adil Wahid, E-mail: adil.maths86@gmail.com

2015-05-01

In the present paper magnetic field effects for copper nanoparticles for blood flow through composite stenosis in arteries with permeable wall are discussed. The copper nanoparticles for the blood flow with water as base fluid is not explored yet. The equations for the Cu–water nanofluid are developed first time in the literature and simplified using long wavelength and low Reynolds number assumptions. Exact solutions have been evaluated for velocity, pressure gradient, the solid volume fraction of the nanoparticles and temperature profile. The effect of various flow parameters on the flow and heat transfer characteristics is utilized. - Highlights: • It is observed that the velocity profile is symmetric for all the parameters and when we increase slip parameter α then there will be more resistance between blood and arteries, hence the blood flow slows down and velocity profile decreases. • It is seen that the velocity field rises due to high electromagnetic forces and buoyancy forces as compared to viscous forces. • It is also noticed that velocity is high for all the parameters in case of pure water as compare to Cu-water because copper makes arteries more flexible that makes the blood flow speed slow. • When we rise heat absorption parameter β then definitely temperature increases rapidly. • The wall shear stress increases for different values of the slip parameter α and the Darcy number D{sub α} with rapid change in copper as compared to pure water.

Dynamical correlations for vicious random walk with a wall

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nagao, Taro

2003-01-01

A one-dimensional system of nonintersecting Brownian particles is constructed as the diffusion scaling limit of Fisher's vicious random walk model. N Brownian particles start from the origin at time t=0 and undergo mutually avoiding motion until a finite time t=T. Dynamical correlation functions among the walkers are exactly evaluated in the case with a wall at the origin. Taking an asymptotic limit N→∞, we observe discontinuous transitions in the dynamical correlations. It is further shown that the vicious walk model with a wall is equivalent to a parametric random matrix model describing the crossover between the Bogoliubov-deGennes universality classes

A statistical state dynamics approach to wall turbulence.

Science.gov (United States)

Farrell, B F; Gayme, D F; Ioannou, P J

2017-03-13

This paper reviews results obtained using statistical state dynamics (SSD) that demonstrate the benefits of adopting this perspective for understanding turbulence in wall-bounded shear flows. The SSD approach used in this work employs a second-order closure that retains only the interaction between the streamwise mean flow and the streamwise mean perturbation covariance. This closure restricts nonlinearity in the SSD to that explicitly retained in the streamwise constant mean flow together with nonlinear interactions between the mean flow and the perturbation covariance. This dynamical restriction, in which explicit perturbation-perturbation nonlinearity is removed from the perturbation equation, results in a simplified dynamics referred to as the restricted nonlinear (RNL) dynamics. RNL systems, in which a finite ensemble of realizations of the perturbation equation share the same mean flow, provide tractable approximations to the SSD, which is equivalent to an infinite ensemble RNL system. This infinite ensemble system, referred to as the stochastic structural stability theory system, introduces new analysis tools for studying turbulence. RNL systems provide computationally efficient means to approximate the SSD and produce self-sustaining turbulence exhibiting qualitative features similar to those observed in direct numerical simulations despite greatly simplified dynamics. The results presented show that RNL turbulence can be supported by as few as a single streamwise varying component interacting with the streamwise constant mean flow and that judicious selection of this truncated support or 'band-limiting' can be used to improve quantitative accuracy of RNL turbulence. These results suggest that the SSD approach provides new analytical and computational tools that allow new insights into wall turbulence.This article is part of the themed issue 'Toward the development of high-fidelity models of wall turbulence at large Reynolds number'. © 2017 The Author(s).

Technical Note: Measurement of common carotid artery lumen dynamics using black-blood MR cine imaging.

Science.gov (United States)

Dai, Erpeng; Dong, Li; Zhang, Zhe; Li, Lyu; Zhang, Hui; Zhao, Xihai; Wang, Jinnan; Yuan, Chun; Guo, Hua

2017-03-01

To demonstrate the feasibility of measuring the common carotid artery (CCA) lumen dynamics using a black-blood cine (BB-cine) imaging method. Motion-sensitized driven-equilibrium (MSDE) prepared spoiled gradient sequence was used for the BB-cine imaging. CCAs of eleven healthy volunteers were studied using this method. Lumen dynamics, including lumen area evolution waveforms and distension values, were measured and evaluated by comparing this method with bright-blood cine (BrB-cine) imaging. Compared with the BrB-cine images, flow artifacts were effectively suppressed in the BB-cine images. BrB-cine images generally show larger lumen areas than BB-cine images. The lumen area waveforms and distension measurements from BB-cine imaging showed smaller variances among different subjects than BrB-cine imaging. The proposed BB-cine imaging technique can suppress the flow artifacts effectively and reduce the partial volume effects from the vessel wall. This might allow more accurate lumen dynamics measurements than traditional BrB-cine imaging, which may further be valuable for investigating biomechanical and functional properties of the cardiovascular system. © 2017 American Association of Physicists in Medicine.

The subpetrous carotid wall hematoma. A sign of spontaneous dissection of the internal carotid artery on non-enhanced computed tomography. A retrospective study

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jensen-Kondering, U.; Univ. Hospital Schleswig-Holstein, Kiel; Huhndorf, M.; Madjidyar, J.; Jansen, O.

2015-01-01

Spontaneous dissection of the internal carotid artery (CAD) is an increasingly recognized cause for stroke especially in young and middle-aged patients. We hypothesized that non-enhanced cranial computed tomography (NECCT) can visualize the subpetrous carotid wall hematoma and thus enable identification of patients with CAD. We retrospectively reviewed patients with confirmed CAD (n=21) and a control group with ischemic symptoms but without CAD (n=42) who received NECCT at admission. Two independent neuroradiologists rated the presence and shape of SPH, density and diameter of the subpetrous internal carotid artery. Additionally, we correlated the shape of the subpetrous carotid wall hematoma with the grade of stenosis on subsequent angiographic imaging. The subpetrous carotid wall hematoma was present in 14 of 21 patients (Cohen's k = 0.67). Mean diameter was 6.95 ± 1.05 mm in dissected vessels and 5.71 ± 1.52 mm in the contralateral vessel (p<0.05). Mean difference in vessel density was 15.05 ± 8.01 HU (p<0.01). Median grade of stenosis was significantly higher in patients with a full moon- shaped (n=11) than crescent-shaped (n=3) subpetrous carotid wall hematoma (21% vs. 80%, p<0.05). Two-thirds of patients with CAD were correctly identified on NECCT. The extracranial carotid artery should be evaluated in patients with symptoms of cerebral ischemia.

The subpetrous carotid wall hematoma. A sign of spontaneous dissection of the internal carotid artery on non-enhanced computed tomography. A retrospective study

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Jensen-Kondering, U. [Univ. Hospital Schleswig-Holstein, Kiel (Germany). Dept. of Radiology and Neuroradiology; Univ. Hospital Schleswig-Holstein, Kiel (Germany). Dept. of Neurology; Huhndorf, M.; Madjidyar, J.; Jansen, O. [Univ. Hospital Schleswig-Holstein, Kiel (Germany). Dept. of Radiology and Neuroradiology

2015-03-15

Spontaneous dissection of the internal carotid artery (CAD) is an increasingly recognized cause for stroke especially in young and middle-aged patients. We hypothesized that non-enhanced cranial computed tomography (NECCT) can visualize the subpetrous carotid wall hematoma and thus enable identification of patients with CAD. We retrospectively reviewed patients with confirmed CAD (n=21) and a control group with ischemic symptoms but without CAD (n=42) who received NECCT at admission. Two independent neuroradiologists rated the presence and shape of SPH, density and diameter of the subpetrous internal carotid artery. Additionally, we correlated the shape of the subpetrous carotid wall hematoma with the grade of stenosis on subsequent angiographic imaging. The subpetrous carotid wall hematoma was present in 14 of 21 patients (Cohen's k = 0.67). Mean diameter was 6.95 ± 1.05 mm in dissected vessels and 5.71 ± 1.52 mm in the contralateral vessel (p<0.05). Mean difference in vessel density was 15.05 ± 8.01 HU (p<0.01). Median grade of stenosis was significantly higher in patients with a full moon- shaped (n=11) than crescent-shaped (n=3) subpetrous carotid wall hematoma (21% vs. 80%, p<0.05). Two-thirds of patients with CAD were correctly identified on NECCT. The extracranial carotid artery should be evaluated in patients with symptoms of cerebral ischemia.

Effect of open-label infusion of an apoA-I-containing particle (CER-001) on RCT and artery wall thickness in patients with FHA[S

Science.gov (United States)

Kootte, Ruud S.; Smits, Loek P.; van der Valk, Fleur M.; Dasseux, Jean-Louis; Keyserling, Constance H.; Barbaras, Ronald; Paolini, John F.; Santos, Raul D.; van Dijk, Theo H.; Dallinga-van Thie, Geesje M.; Nederveen, Aart J.; Mulder, Willem J. M.; Hovingh, G. Kees; Kastelein, John J. P.; Groen, Albert K.; Stroes, Erik S.

2015-01-01

Reverse cholesterol transport (RCT) contributes to the anti-atherogenic effects of HDL. Patients with the orphan disease, familial hypoalphalipoproteinemia (FHA), are characterized by decreased tissue cholesterol removal and an increased atherogenic burden. We performed an open-label uncontrolled proof-of-concept study to evaluate the effect of infusions with a human apoA-I-containing HDL-mimetic particle (CER-001) on RCT and the arterial vessel wall in FHA. Subjects received 20 infusions of CER-001 (8 mg/kg) during 6 months. Efficacy was assessed by measuring (apo)lipoproteins, plasma-mediated cellular cholesterol efflux, fecal sterol excretion (FSE), and carotid artery wall dimension by MRI and artery wall inflammation by 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography/computed tomography scans. We included seven FHA patients: HDL-cholesterol (HDL-c), 13.8 [1.8–29.1] mg/dl; apoA-I, 28.7 [7.9–59.1] mg/dl. Following nine infusions in 1 month, apoA-I and HDL-c increased directly after infusion by 27.0 and 16.1 mg/dl (P = 0.018). CER-001 induced a 44% relative increase (P = 0.018) in in vitro cellular cholesterol efflux with a trend toward increased FSE (P = 0.068). After nine infusions of CER-001, carotid mean vessel wall area decreased compared with baseline from 25.0 to 22.8 mm2 (P = 0.043) and target-to-background ratio from 2.04 to 1.81 (P = 0.046). In FHA-subjects, CER-001 stimulates cholesterol mobilization and reduces artery wall dimension and inflammation, supporting further evaluation of CER-001 in FHA patients. PMID:25561459

Unraveling the relationship between arterial flow and intra-aneurysmal hemodynamics.

Science.gov (United States)

Morales, Hernán G; Bonnefous, Odile

2015-02-26

Arterial flow rate affects intra-aneurysmal hemodynamics but it is not clear how their relationship is. This uncertainty hinders the comparison among studies, including clinical evaluations, like a pre- and post-treatment status, since arterial flow rates may differ at each time acquisition. The purposes of this work are as follows: (1) To study how intra-aneurysmal hemodynamics changes within the full physiological range of arterial flow rates. (2) To provide characteristic curves of intra-aneurysmal velocity, wall shear stress (WSS) and pressure as functions of the arterial flow rate. Fifteen image-based aneurysm models were studied using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations. The full range of physiological arterial flow rates reported in the literature was covered by 11 pulsatile simulations. For each aneurysm, the spatiotemporal-averaged blood flow velocity, WSS and pressure were calculated. Spatiotemporal-averaged velocity inside the aneurysm linearly increases as a function of the mean arterial flow (minimum R(2)>0.963). Spatiotemporal-averaged WSS and pressure at the aneurysm wall can be represented by quadratic functions of the arterial flow rate (minimum R(2)>0.996). Quantitative characterizations of spatiotemporal-averaged velocity, WSS and pressure inside cerebral aneurysms can be obtained with respect to the arterial flow rate. These characteristic curves provide more information of the relationship between arterial flow and aneurysm hemodynamics since the full range of arterial flow rates is considered. Having these curves, it is possible to compare experimental studies and clinical evaluations when different flow conditions are used. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Arterial grafts exhibiting unprecedented cellular infiltration and remodeling in vivo: the role of cells in the vascular wall.

Science.gov (United States)

Row, Sindhu; Peng, Haofan; Schlaich, Evan M; Koenigsknecht, Carmon; Andreadis, Stelios T; Swartz, Daniel D

2015-05-01

To engineer and implant vascular grafts in the arterial circulation of a pre-clinical animal model and assess the role of donor medial cells in graft remodeling and function. Vascular grafts were engineered using Small Intestinal Submucosa (SIS)-fibrin hybrid scaffold and implanted interpositionally into the arterial circulation of an ovine model. We sought to demonstrate implantability of SIS-Fibrin based grafts; examine the remodeling; and determine whether the presence of vascular cells in the medial wall was necessary for cellular infiltration from the host and successful remodeling of the implants. We observed no occlusions or anastomotic complications in 18 animals that received these grafts. Notably, the grafts exhibited unprecedented levels of host cell infiltration that was not limited to the anastomotic sites but occurred through the lumen as well as the extramural side, leading to uniform cell distribution. Incoming cells remodeled the extracellular matrix and matured into functional smooth muscle cells as evidenced by expression of myogenic markers and development of vascular reactivity. Interestingly, tracking the donor cells revealed that their presence was beneficial but not necessary for successful grafting. Indeed, the proliferation rate and number of donor cells decreased over time as the vascular wall was dominated by host cells leading to significant remodeling and development of contractile function. These results demonstrate that SIS-Fibrin grafts can be successfully implanted into the arterial circulation of a clinically relevant animal model, improve our understanding of vascular graft remodeling and raise the possibility of engineering mural cell-free arterial grafts. Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Thermal dynamic simulation of wall for building energy efficiency under varied climate environment

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Xuejin; Zhang, Yujin; Hong, Jing

2017-08-01

Aiming at different kind of walls in five cities of different zoning for thermal design, using thermal instantaneous response factors method, the author develops software to calculation air conditioning cooling load temperature, thermal response factors, and periodic response factors. On the basis of the data, the author gives the net work analysis about the influence of dynamic thermal of wall on air-conditioning load and thermal environment in building of different zoning for thermal design regional, and put forward the strategy how to design thermal insulation and heat preservation wall base on dynamic thermal characteristic of wall under different zoning for thermal design regional. And then provide the theory basis and the technical references for the further study on the heat preservation with the insulation are in the service of energy saving wall design. All-year thermal dynamic load simulating and energy consumption analysis for new energy-saving building is very important in building environment. This software will provide the referable scientific foundation for all-year new thermal dynamic load simulation, energy consumption analysis, building environment systems control, carrying through farther research on thermal particularity and general particularity evaluation for new energy -saving walls building. Based on which, we will not only expediently design system of building energy, but also analyze building energy consumption and carry through scientific energy management. The study will provide the referable scientific foundation for carrying through farther research on thermal particularity and general particularity evaluation for new energy saving walls building.

Accumulation of native and methylated low density lipoproteins by healing rabbit arterial wall

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fischman, A.J.; Lees, A.M.; Lees, R.S.; Barlai-Kovach, M.; Strauss, H.W.

1987-01-01

To determine whether healing arterial wall accumulation of low density lipoproteins (LDL) is mediated by the high affinity LDL receptor, normocholesterolemic rabbits were injected with 125 I-LDL, /sup 99m/Tc-LDL, or the reductively methylated analogs of these compounds ( 125 I-MeLDL, /sup 99m/Tc-MeLDL), 1 month after balloon catheter deendothelialization of the abdominal aorta. If the mechanism of accumulation requires interaction with the LDL receptor, reductively methylated lipoproteins which do not bind to the receptor should not accumulate in healing arterial wall. Twenty-four hours after injection of labelled lipoproteins, each animal was injected with Evans blue dye, in order to distinguish reendothelialized from deendothelialized aorta. One hour after dye injection, the aorta was fixed, removed, divided into abdominal (ballooned) and thoracic (unballooned) regions and counted. For all lipoprotein preparations, there were three to four times as many counts in the abdominal as in the thoracic aorta. En face autoradiographs were made of the aortas that had been exposed to 125 I-labelled lipoproteins. In the autoradiographs, the areas of the lowest activity corresponded to the centers of healing endothelial islands. The most intense radioactivity for both lipoproteins occurred in the region of the leading edge of the endothelial islands where active endothelial regeneration was in progress. The overall distribution of native and MeLDL accumulation was the same. The results suggest that low density lipoproteins are accumulated in areas of active endothelial regeneration by a mechanism that does not involve the high affinity LDL receptor

Evidence of arterial wall uptake of fluorodeoxyglucose on imaging can indicate recent or future cardiovascular events in high-risk patients

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Paulmier, B.; Khayat, R.; Duet, M.; Pierquet-Ghazzar, N.; Maunoury, C.; Sauvaget, E.; Faraggi, M.; Laissy, J.P.

2007-01-01

With this study, we sought to identify plaque inflammation as assessed by 18 FDG uptake on positron emission tomography (PET)/computed tomography (CT) as an independent cardiovascular risk factor in patients at high risk for cardiovascular events. We compared 31 consecutive cancer patients presenting with visually enhanced 18 FDG uptake in arterial walls on PET/CT (Group 1) to a selection of 34 matched cancer patients not showing arterial uptake (Group 2). All patients were followed for two years before and six months after PET/CT... Cardiovascular events were classified as older (>6 months before PET/CT) or recent ( 18 FDG uptake was computed on non-attenuation corrected data by a AW/L ratio: mean Arterial Wall uptake/Lung uptake in a normal area, and by SUV on corrected data. A calcium score (CS) was also calculated. 18 FDG uptake and CS were higher in Group 1 than Group 2 (both p = 0.02), and older and recent cardiovascular events were significantly more frequent in Group 1 than Group 2 (p = 0.001 and p = 0.03. respectively). Among the following parameters: number of conventional risk factor, calcium score and presence of 18 FDG uptake, only the latter was significantly related to the occurrence of a recent event by multivariate analysis (p = 0.02). Patients with elevated arterial 18 FDG uptake have a high risk of immediate or future cardiovascular events. Arterial 18 FDG uptake is an indicator of evolving atherosclerotic process and can indicate future cardiovascular events. (authors)

LB03.04: SPHYGMOMANOMETER CUFF CONSTRUCTION AND MATERIALS AFFECT TRANSMISSION OF PRESSURE FROM CUFF TO ARTERIAL WALL. FINITE ELEMENT ANALYSIS OF HUMAN PRESSURE MEASUREMENTS AND DICOM DATA.

Science.gov (United States)

Lewis, P; Naqvi, S; Mandal, P; Potluri, P

2015-06-01

Sphygmomanometer cuff pressure during deflation is assumed to equal systolic arterial pressure at the point of resumption of flow. Previous studies demonstrated that pressure decreases with increasing depth of soft tissues whilst visco-elastic characteristics of the arm tissue cause spatial and temporal variation in pressure magnitude. These generally used non-anatomical axisymmetrical arm simulations without incorporating arterial pressure variation. We used data from a volunteer's Magnetic Resonance (MR) arm scan and investigated the effect of variations in cuff materials and construction on the simulated transmission of pressure from under the cuff to the arterial wall under sinusoidal flow conditions. Pressure was measured under 8 different cuffs using Oxford Pressure Monitor Sensors placed at 90 degrees around the mid upper arm of a healthy male. Each cuff was inflated 3 times to 155 mmHg and then deflated to zero with 90 seconds between inflations. Young's modulus, flexural rigidity and thickness of each cuff was measured.Using DICOM data from the MR scan of the arm, a 3D model was derived using ScanIP and imported into Abaqus for Finite Element Analysis (FEA). Published mechanical properties of arm tissues and geometric non-linearity were assumed. The measured sub-cuff pressures were applied to the simulated arm and pressure was calculated around the brachial arterial wall. which was loaded with a sinusoidal pressure of 125/85 mmHg. FEA estimates of pressure around the brachial artery cuffs varied by up to 27 mmHg SBP and 17 mmHg DBP with different cuffs. Pressures within the cuffs varied up to 27 mmHg. Pressure transmission from the cuff to the arterial surface achieved a 95% transmission ratio with one rubber-bladdered cuff but varied between 76 and 88% for the others. Non-uniform pressure distribution around the arterial wall was strongly related to cuff fabric elastic modulus. Identical size cuffs with a separate rubber bladder produced peri-arterial

Dynamics of motion of a clot through an arterial bifurcation: a finite element analysis

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Abolfazli, Ehsan; Fatouraee, Nasser [Faculty of Biomedical Engineering, Amirkabir University of Technology, Tehran (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Vahidi, Bahman, E-mail: e.abolfazli@aut.ac.ir, E-mail: nasser@aut.ac.ir, E-mail: bahman_vahidi@ut.ac.ir [Department of Life Science Engineering, Faculty of New Sciences and Technologies, University of Tehran (Iran, Islamic Republic of)

2014-10-01

Although arterial embolism is important as a major cause of brain infarction, little information is available about the hemodynamic factors which govern the path emboli tend to follow. A method which predicts the trajectory of emboli in carotid arteries would be of a great value in understanding ischemic attack mechanisms and eventually devising hemodynamically optimal techniques for prevention of strokes. In this paper, computational models are presented to investigate the motion of a blood clot in a human carotid artery bifurcation. The governing equations for blood flow are the Navier–Stokes formulations. To achieve large structural movements, the arbitrary Lagrangian–Eulerian formulation (ALE) with an adaptive mesh method was employed for the fluid domain. The problem was solved by simultaneous solution of the fluid and the structure equations. In this paper, the phenomenon was simulated under laminar and Newtonian flow conditions. The measured stress–strain curve obtained from ultrasound elasticity imaging of the thrombus was set to a Sussman–Bathe material model representing embolus material properties. Shear stress magnitudes in the inner wall of the internal carotid artery (ICA) were measured. High magnitudes of wall shear stress (WSS) occurred in the areas in which the embolus and arterial are in contact with each other. Stress distribution in the embolus was also calculated and areas prone to rapture were identified. Effects of embolus size and embolus density on its motion velocity were investigated and it was observed that an increase in either embolus size or density led to a reduction in movement velocity of the embolus. Embolus trajectory and shear stress from a simulation of embolus movement in a three-dimensional model with patient-specific carotid artery bifurcation geometry are also presented.

Segmental front line dynamics of randomly pinned ferroelastic domain walls

Science.gov (United States)

Puchberger, S.; Soprunyuk, V.; Schranz, W.; Carpenter, M. A.

2018-01-01

Dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) measurements as a function of temperature, frequency, and dynamic force amplitude are used to perform a detailed study of the domain wall motion in LaAlO3. In previous DMA measurements Harrison et al. [Phys. Rev. B 69, 144101 (2004), 10.1103/PhysRevB.69.144101] found evidence for dynamic phase transitions of ferroelastic domain walls in LaAlO3. In the present work we focus on the creep-to-relaxation region of domain wall motion using two complementary methods. We determine, in addition to dynamic susceptibility data, waiting time distributions of strain jerks during slowly increasing stress. These strain jerks, which result from self-similar avalanches close to the depinning threshold, follow a power-law behavior with an energy exponent ɛ =1.7 ±0.1 . Also, the distribution of waiting times between events follows a power law N (tw) ∝tw-(n +1 ) with an exponent n =0.9 , which transforms to a power law of susceptibility S (ω ) ∝ω-n . The present dynamic susceptibility data can be well fitted with a power law, with the same exponent (n =0.9 ) up to a characteristic frequency ω ≈ω* , where a crossover from stochastic DW motion to the pinned regime is well described using the scaling function of Fedorenko et al. [Phys. Rev. B 70, 224104 (2004), 10.1103/PhysRevB.70.224104].

Arterial bending angle and wall morphology correlate with slow coronary flow: Determination with multidetector CT coronary angiography

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kantarci, Mecit; Guendogdu, Fuat; Doganay, Selim; Duran, Cihan; Kalkan, M. Emin; Sagsoz, M. Erdem; Kucuk, Osman; Karakaya, Afak; Kucuk, Ahmet; Akguen, Metin

2011-01-01

Background and purpose: The purpose of this study was to assess angulations and vessel wall morphology that could lead to bending head loss in the RCA and LMCA arteries of patients with slow coronary flow (SCF) evaluated by MDCT coronary angiography. Methods: The study involved 51 patients (45 males, mean age: 59.6 years) who were diagnosed with SCF by coronary angiography. Diagnosis of SCF was based on thrombolysis in myocardial infarction (TIMI) frame count. Fifty-one patients with absence of slow flow were selected as the control group. The angulations of the main coronary arteries with the aorta were measured from the axial images obtained through MDCT coronary angiography, and the findings were recorded. In addition, the coronary artery walls of these patients were evaluated. For statistical analysis, SPSS for Windows 10.0 (SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL) was used. For comparisons of the angles, either independent samples t test or the Mann-Whitney U test was used where appropriate. Results: The results of the study indicated that 38 patients had SCF in the LAD. Comparisons of patients with SCF with the controls revealed that in the patients with SCF, the mean angle of the LMCA with the aorta (40.9 ± 20.5 o ) was statistically significantly smaller than the mean angle of the LMCA with the aorta in the control cases (71.8 ± 11 o ). In 12 patients, slow flow was detected in the RCA. Those with slow flow in the RCA had significantly smaller angles (mean: 33.2 ± 20.4 o ) than the other cases (mean: 78.9 ± 10.7 o ). Conclusion: A small angle of origin of the main coronary arteries from the aorta, measured on MDCT examinations is correlated with slow blood flow in those vessels, as calculated by the TIMI frame count in catheter coronary angiography.

Arterial bending angle and wall morphology correlate with slow coronary flow: Determination with multidetector CT coronary angiography

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kantarci, Mecit, E-mail: akkanrad@hotmail.com [Department of Radiology, Medical Faculty, Atatuerk University, Erzurum (Turkey); Guendogdu, Fuat [Department of Cardiology, Medical Faculty, Atatuerk University, Erzurum (Turkey); Doganay, Selim [Department of Radiology, Medical Faculty, Erciyes University, Kayseri (Turkey); Duran, Cihan [Department of Radiology, Bilim University, Florence Nightingale Hospital, Istanbul (Turkey); Kalkan, M. Emin [Department of Cardiology, Medical Faculty, Atatuerk University, Erzurum (Turkey); Sagsoz, M. Erdem [Department of Radiology, Medical Faculty, Atatuerk University, Erzurum (Turkey); Kucuk, Osman [Department of Electronic Engineering, Engineering Faculty, Atatuerk University, Erzurum (Turkey); Karakaya, Afak [Department of Radiology, Medical Faculty, Atatuerk University, Erzurum (Turkey); Kucuk, Ahmet [Department of Mathematics, Science Faculty, Atatuerk University, Erzurum (Turkey); Akguen, Metin [Department of Chest, Medical Faculty, Atatuerk University, Erzurum (Turkey)

2011-01-15

Background and purpose: The purpose of this study was to assess angulations and vessel wall morphology that could lead to bending head loss in the RCA and LMCA arteries of patients with slow coronary flow (SCF) evaluated by MDCT coronary angiography. Methods: The study involved 51 patients (45 males, mean age: 59.6 years) who were diagnosed with SCF by coronary angiography. Diagnosis of SCF was based on thrombolysis in myocardial infarction (TIMI) frame count. Fifty-one patients with absence of slow flow were selected as the control group. The angulations of the main coronary arteries with the aorta were measured from the axial images obtained through MDCT coronary angiography, and the findings were recorded. In addition, the coronary artery walls of these patients were evaluated. For statistical analysis, SPSS for Windows 10.0 (SPSS Inc., Chicago, IL) was used. For comparisons of the angles, either independent samples t test or the Mann-Whitney U test was used where appropriate. Results: The results of the study indicated that 38 patients had SCF in the LAD. Comparisons of patients with SCF with the controls revealed that in the patients with SCF, the mean angle of the LMCA with the aorta (40.9 {+-} 20.5{sup o}) was statistically significantly smaller than the mean angle of the LMCA with the aorta in the control cases (71.8 {+-} 11{sup o}). In 12 patients, slow flow was detected in the RCA. Those with slow flow in the RCA had significantly smaller angles (mean: 33.2 {+-} 20.4{sup o}) than the other cases (mean: 78.9 {+-} 10.7{sup o}). Conclusion: A small angle of origin of the main coronary arteries from the aorta, measured on MDCT examinations is correlated with slow blood flow in those vessels, as calculated by the TIMI frame count in catheter coronary angiography.

Experimental study on representation of flow on the bifurcated carotid arterial phantoms using magnetic resonance angiography

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chung, Tae Sub; Rhim, Yoon Chul; Kim, Kyung Oh; Suh, Sang Ho; Jin, En Hao

1995-01-01

A common finding of carotid artery on magnetic resonance angiograms(MRAs) is a signal dropout along the posterior wall of carotid bulb due to reverse flow. The purpose of this study is to evaluate variable flow patterns on bifurcated carotid arterial phantoms using steady-state flow. We designed phantoms of a bifurcated carotid artery with acrylic materials. Flow patterns were evaluated with axial and coronal imaging of MRA(2D-TOF, 3D-TOF), color Doppler imaging, and computational fluid dynamics (CFD) within the phantoms constructed of an automated closed-type circulatory system filled with 4% sugar solution. These findings were compared with findings obtained from normal volunteers. Axial 3D-TOF MRA images exhibited closer resemblance to the contour of the inner wall of phantoms when compared to coronal 2D-TOF MRA imaging. However, 2D-TOF MRA showed good contrast difference of signal intensities between forward flow area and reverse flow area. Dark zones with reduced signal intensities due to reversed flow were separated from the outer wall of the internal and external carotid arteries by a thin layer of forward flow along the wall on the source slice image of MRA. The general hemodynamics of the phantoms on MRA were identical to hemodynamics on color Doppler imaging and CFD. The results obtained with the phantoms matched the findings on normal volunteers. Although representations of bifurcated carotid arterial phantoms on axial 3D-TOF MRA were excellent if ideally designed, the zone of reversed flow could be a significant factor in creating distorted image when the zone of reversed flow contacted directly with curved or deformed arterial wall

Flow and wall shear stress in end-to-side and side-to-side anastomosis of venous coronary artery bypass grafts

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Poulikakos Dimos

2007-09-01

Full Text Available Abstract Purpose Coronary artery bypass graft (CABG surgery represents the standard treatment of advanced coronary artery disease. Two major types of anastomosis exist to connect the graft to the coronary artery, i.e., by using an end-to-side or a side-to-side anastomosis. There is still controversy because of the differences in the patency rates of the two types of anastomosis. The purpose of this paper is to non-invasively quantify hemodynamic parameters, such as mass flow and wall shear stress (WSS, in end-to-side and side-to-side anastomoses of patients with CABG using computational fluid dynamics (CFD. Methods One patient with saphenous CABG and end-to-side anastomosis and one patient with saphenous CABG and side-to-side anastomosis underwent 16-detector row computed tomography (CT. Geometric models of coronary arteries and bypasses were reconstructed for CFD analysis. Blood flow was considered pulsatile, laminar, incompressible and Newtonian. Peri-anastomotic mass flow and WSS were quantified and flow patterns visualized. Results CFD analysis based on in-vivo CT coronary angiography data was feasible in both patients. For both types of CABG, flow patterns were characterized by a retrograde flow into the native coronary artery. WSS variations were found in both anastomoses types, with highest WSS values at the heel and lowest WSS values at the floor of the end-to-side anastomosis. In contrast, the highest WSS values of the side-to-side anastomosis configuration were found in stenotic vessel segments and not in the close vicinity of the anastomosis. Flow stagnation zones were found in end-to-side but not in side-to-side anastomosis, the latter also demonstrating a smoother stream division throughout the cardiac cycle. Conclusion CFD analysis of venous CABG based on in-vivo CT datasets in patients was feasible producing qualitative and quantitative information on mass flow and WSS. Differences were found between the two types of anastomosis

Physical Activity and Characteristics of the Carotid Artery Wall in High-Risk Patients-The SMART (Second Manifestations of Arterial Disease) Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Boss, H Myrthe; van der Graaf, Yolanda; Visseren, Frank L J; Van den Berg-Vos, Renske M; Bots, Michiel L; de Borst, Gert Jan; Cramer, Maarten J; Kappelle, L Jaap; Geerlings, Mirjam I

2017-07-23

Physical activity reduces the risk of vascular disease. This benefit is not entirely explained through an effect on vascular risk factors. We examined the relationship of physical activity and characteristics of the carotid artery wall in patients with vascular disease or risk factors. Cross-sectional analyses were performed in 9578 patients from the SMART (Second Manifestations of Arterial Disease) study, a prospective cohort study among patients with vascular disease or risk factors. Physical activity was assessed using questionnaires. Carotid intima-media thickness and carotid artery stenosis of both common carotid arteries was measured. In a subset of 3165 participants carotid diastolic diameter and distension were assessed. Carotid stiffness was expressed as the distensibility coefficient and Young's elastic modulus. Regression analyses adjusted for vascular risk factors showed that physical activity was inversely associated with diastolic diameter (fifth versus first quintile B=-0.13 mm; 95% CI, -0.21 to -0.05) and decreased risk of carotid artery stenosis (relative risk, 0.58; 95% CI, 0.48-0.69). A light level of physical activity was associated with less carotid stiffness (second versus first quintile; Young's elastic modulus B=-0.11 kPa -1 ×10 -3 ; 95% CI, -0.16 to -0.06; distensibility coefficient B=0.93 kPa×10 3 ; 95% CI, 0.34-1.51), but there was no additional benefit with increasing levels of physical activity. In patients with vascular disease, physical activity was inversely associated with common carotid intima-media thickness, but not in patients with vascular risk factors. In patients with vascular disease or risk factors, increased physical activity was associated with smaller carotid diastolic diameter, decreased risk of carotid artery stenosis, and less carotid stiffness, but it only showed benefits on carotid intima-media thickness in patients with vascular disease. © 2017 The Authors. Published on behalf of the American Heart

Evaluation of the impact of carotid artery bifurcation angle on hemodynamics by use of computational fluid dynamics: a simulation and volunteer study.

Science.gov (United States)

Saho, Tatsunori; Onishi, Hideo

2016-07-01

In this study, we evaluated the hemodynamics of carotid artery bifurcation with various geometries using simulated and volunteer models based on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Computational fluid dynamics (CFD) was analyzed by use of OpenFOAM. The velocity distribution, streamline, and wall shear stress (WSS) were evaluated in a simulated model with known bifurcation angles (30°, 40°, 50°, 60°, derived from patients' data) and in three-dimensional (3D) healthy volunteer models. Separated flow was observed at the outer side of the bifurcation, and large bifurcation models represented upstream transfer of the point. Local WSS values at the outer bifurcation [both simulated (100 Pa). The bifurcation angle had a significant negative correlation with the WSS value (p<0.05). The results of this study show that the carotid artery bifurcation angle is related to the WSS value. This suggests that hemodynamic stress can be estimated based on the carotid artery geometry. The construction of a clinical database for estimation of developing atherosclerosis is warranted.

Localization of vector field on dynamical domain wall

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Masafumi Higuchi

2017-03-01

Full Text Available In the previous works (arXiv:1202.5375 and arXiv:1402.1346, the dynamical domain wall, where the four dimensional FRW universe is embedded in the five dimensional space–time, has been realized by using two scalar fields. In this paper, we consider the localization of vector field in three formulations. The first formulation was investigated in the previous paper (arXiv:1510.01099 for the U(1 gauge field. In the second formulation, we investigate the Dvali–Shifman mechanism (arXiv:hep-th/9612128, where the non-abelian gauge field is confined in the bulk but the gauge symmetry is spontaneously broken on the domain wall. In the third formulation, we investigate the Kaluza–Klein modes coming from the five dimensional graviton. In the Randall–Sundrum model, the graviton was localized on the brane. We show that the (5,μ components (μ=0,1,2,3 of the graviton are also localized on the domain wall and can be regarded as the vector field on the domain wall. There are, however, some corrections coming from the bulk extra dimension if the domain wall universe is expanding.

The normal distribution of thoracoabdominal aorta small branch artery ostia

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cronin, Paul; Williams, David M.; Vellody, Ranjith; Kelly, Aine Marie; Kazerooni, Ella A.; Carlos, Ruth C.

2011-01-01

The purpose of this study was to determine the normal distribution of aortic branch artery ostia. CT scans of 100 subjects were retrospectively reviewed. The angular distributions of the aorta with respect to the center of the T3 to L4 vertebral bodies, and of branch artery origins with respect to the center of the aorta were measured. At each vertebral body level the distribution of intercostal/lumbar arteries and other branch arteries were calculated. The proximal descending aorta is posteriorly placed becoming a midline structure, at the thoracolumbar junction, and remains anterior to the vertebral bodies within the abdomen. The intercostal and lumbar artery ostia have a distinct distribution. At each vertebral level from T3 caudally, one intercostal artery originates from the posterior wall of the aorta throughout the thoracic aorta, while the other intercostal artery originates from the medial wall of the descending thoracic aorta high in the chest, posteromedially from the mid-thoracic aorta, and from the posterior wall of the aorta low in the chest. Mediastinal branches of the thoracic aorta originate from the medial and anterior wall. Lumbar branches originate only from the posterior wall of the abdominal aorta. Aortic branch artery origins arise with a bimodal distribution and have a characteristic location. Mediastinal branches of the thoracic aorta originate from the medial and anterior wall. Knowing the location of aortic branch artery ostia may help distinguish branch artery pseudoaneurysms from penetrating ulcers.

A computational approach for inferring the cell wall properties that govern guard cell dynamics.

Science.gov (United States)

Woolfenden, Hugh C; Bourdais, Gildas; Kopischke, Michaela; Miedes, Eva; Molina, Antonio; Robatzek, Silke; Morris, Richard J

2017-10-01

Guard cells dynamically adjust their shape in order to regulate photosynthetic gas exchange, respiration rates and defend against pathogen entry. Cell shape changes are determined by the interplay of cell wall material properties and turgor pressure. To investigate this relationship between turgor pressure, cell wall properties and cell shape, we focused on kidney-shaped stomata and developed a biomechanical model of a guard cell pair. Treating the cell wall as a composite of the pectin-rich cell wall matrix embedded with cellulose microfibrils, we show that strong, circumferentially oriented fibres are critical for opening. We find that the opening dynamics are dictated by the mechanical stress response of the cell wall matrix, and as the turgor rises, the pectinaceous matrix stiffens. We validate these predictions with stomatal opening experiments in selected Arabidopsis cell wall mutants. Thus, using a computational framework that combines a 3D biomechanical model with parameter optimization, we demonstrate how to exploit subtle shape changes to infer cell wall material properties. Our findings reveal that proper stomatal dynamics are built on two key properties of the cell wall, namely anisotropy in the form of hoop reinforcement and strain stiffening. © 2017 The Authors The Plant Journal © 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd and Society for Experimental Biology.

[The state of carotid arteries in young men with arterial hypertension].

Science.gov (United States)

Safarova, A F; Iurtaeva, V R; Kotovskaia, Iu V; Kobalava, Zh D

2012-01-01

To study elastic properties of carotid arteries in young men with arterial hypertension (AH). We examined men aged 18-25 years (mean 21.1+/-0.14 years): 36 with normal blood pressure (BP), 123 with stable and 51 with unstable AH. Parameters studied comprised intima-media thickness (IMT) of carotid arteries, their M-mode measured maximal systolic and minimal diastolic diameters (Ds and Dd), stiffness of common carotid artery (CCA) wall determined on the basis of analysis of elasticity and distensibility coefficients (CC and DC), Peterson's and Young's modules of elasticity (Ep and E), and index of flow deformation (CS). Compared with young men with normal BP and unstable AH patients with stable AH had abnormal elastic properties of CCA and increased IMT. Stable AH in young men is associated with signs of remodeling of CCA walls and increase of their rigidity.

Unexpected arterial wall and cellular inflammation in patients with rheumatoid arthritis in remission using biological therapy: a cross-sectional study

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Bernelot Moens, Sophie J.; van der Valk, Fleur M.; Strang, Aart C.; Kroon, Jeffrey; Smits, Loek P.; Kneepkens, Eva L.; Verberne, Hein J.; van Buul, Jaap D.; Nurmohamed, Michael T.; Stroes, Erik S. G.

2016-01-01

Increasing numbers of patients (up to 40 %) with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) achieve remission, yet it remains to be elucidated whether this also normalizes their cardiovascular risk. Short-term treatment with TNF inhibitors lowers arterial wall inflammation, but not to levels of healthy controls. We

Wall shear stress fixed points in cardiovascular fluid mechanics.

Science.gov (United States)

Arzani, Amirhossein; Shadden, Shawn C

2018-05-17

Complex blood flow in large arteries creates rich wall shear stress (WSS) vectorial features. WSS acts as a link between blood flow dynamics and the biology of various cardiovascular diseases. WSS has been of great interest in a wide range of studies and has been the most popular measure to correlate blood flow to cardiovascular disease. Recent studies have emphasized different vectorial features of WSS. However, fixed points in the WSS vector field have not received much attention. A WSS fixed point is a point on the vessel wall where the WSS vector vanishes. In this article, WSS fixed points are classified and the aspects by which they could influence cardiovascular disease are reviewed. First, the connection between WSS fixed points and the flow topology away from the vessel wall is discussed. Second, the potential role of time-averaged WSS fixed points in biochemical mass transport is demonstrated using the recent concept of Lagrangian WSS structures. Finally, simple measures are proposed to quantify the exposure of the endothelial cells to WSS fixed points. Examples from various arterial flow applications are demonstrated. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Impact of competitive flow on wall shear stress in coronary surgery: computational fluid dynamics of a LIMA-LAD model.

Science.gov (United States)

Nordgaard, Håvard; Swillens, Abigail; Nordhaug, Dag; Kirkeby-Garstad, Idar; Van Loo, Denis; Vitale, Nicola; Segers, Patrick; Haaverstad, Rune; Lovstakken, Lasse

2010-12-01

Competitive flow from native coronary vessels is considered a major factor in the failure of coronary bypass grafts. However, the pathophysiological effects are not fully understood. Low and oscillatory wall shear stress (WSS) is known to induce endothelial dysfunction and vascular disease, like atherosclerosis and intimal hyperplasia. The aim was to investigate the impact of competitive flow on WSS in mammary artery bypass grafts. Using computational fluid dynamics, WSS was calculated in a left internal mammary artery (LIMA) graft to the left anterior descending artery in a three-dimensional in vivo porcine coronary artery bypass graft model. The following conditions were investigated: high competitive flow (non-significant coronary lesion), partial competitive flow (significant coronary lesion), and no competitive flow (totally occluded coronary vessel). Time-averaged WSS of LIMA at high, partial, and no competitive flow were 0.3-0.6, 0.6-3.0, and 0.9-3.0 Pa, respectively. Further, oscillatory WSS quantified as the oscillatory shear index (OSI) ranged from (maximum OSI = 0.5 equals zero net WSS) 0.15 to 0.35, OSI similar to the no competitive flow condition. Graft flow is highly dependent on the degree of competitive flow. High competitive flow was found to produce unfavourable WSS consistent with endothelial dysfunction and subsequent graft narrowing and failure. Partial competitive flow, however, may be better tolerated as it was found to be similar to the ideal condition of no competitive flow.

Mechanical characterization and constitutive modeling of the coronary artery

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Broek, van den C.N.

2010-01-01

Coronary heart disease is the most frequently occurring cardiovascular disease in Europe. The components of the arterial wall are strongly related to the arterial mechanical behavior, and the composition may change because of remodeling processes that take place in the arterial wall, upon disease or

Does the Ventrica magnetic vascular positioner (MVP) for coronary artery bypass grafting significantly alter local fluid dynamics? A numeric study.

Science.gov (United States)

Morbiducci, U; Lemma, M; Ponzini, R; Boi, A; Bondavalli, L; Antona, C; Montevecchi, F M; Redaelli, A

2007-07-01

Automatic devices have been recently introduced to make the anastomosis procedure quick and efficient when creating a coronary bypass on the beating heart. However, the implantation of these devices could modify the graft configuration, consistently affecting the hemodynamics usually found in the traditional anastomosis. As local fluid dynamics could play a significant role in the onset of vessel wall pathologies, in this article a computational approach was designed to investigate flow patterns in the presence of the Ventrica magnetic vascular positioner (Ventrica MVP) device. A model of standard hand-sewn anastomosis and of automated magnetic anastomosis were constructed, and the finite volume method was used to simulate in silico realistic graft hemodynamics. Synthetic analytical descriptors -- i.e., time-averaged wall shear stress (TAWSS), oscillating shear index (OSI) and helical flow index (HFI) -- were calculated and compared for quantitative assessment of the anastomosis geometry hemodynamic performance. In this case study, the same most critical region was identified for the 2 models as the one with the lowest TAWSS and the highest OSI (TAWSS=0.229, OSI=0.255 for the hand-sewn anastomosis; TAWSS=0.297, OSI=0.171 for the Ventrica MVP(R)). However, the shape of the Ventrica MVP does not induce more critical wall shear stresses, oscillating flow and damped helicity in the graft fluid dynamics, as compared with conventional anastomosis. We found that the use of the Ventrica MVP for the case study under investigation was not associated with more critical fluid dynamics than with conventional hand-sewn anastomosis. Thereby, the device could facilitate beating heart and minimally invasive coronary artery bypass grafting without increasing local hemodynamic-related risks of failure.

Skin effect modifications of the Resistive Wall Mode dynamics in tokamaks

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Villone, Fabio, E-mail: villone@unicas.it [Ass. Euratom/ENEA/CREATE, DIEI, Università di Cassino e del Lazio Meridionale, Via Di Biasio 43, 03043 Cassino, FR (Italy); Pustovitov, Vladimir D. [Institute of Tokamak Physics, National Research Centre ‘Kurchatov Institute’, Pl. Kurchatova 1, Moscow 123182 (Russian Federation)

2013-11-22

We present the first evidence of the skin-effect modification of the Resistive Wall Mode (RWM) dynamics in a tokamak. The computations are performed with the CarMa code, using its unique ability of treating volumetric 3D conducting structures. The results prove that conventional thin-wall models and codes, assuming the thin equivalent wall located on the inner side of a real (thick) wall, may fail to get accurate estimates of RWM growth rates, since the inclusion of the skin effect makes the growth rates always larger than otherwise. The difference is noticeable even for the conventional slow RWMs and becomes substantial for faster modes. Some possible equivalent thin-wall modeling approaches are also discussed.

Altered Metabolism of LDL in the Arterial Wall Precedes Atherosclerosis Regression

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bartels, Emil D.; Christoffersen, Christina; Lindholm, Marie W.

2015-01-01

and degradation of LDL particles in atherosclerotic aortas of mice by measuring the accumulation of iodinated LDL particles in the arterial wall. Methods and Results: Cholesterol-fed, LDL receptor–deficient mice were treated with either an anti-Apob antisense oligonucleotide or a mismatch control antisense...... oligonucleotide once a week for 1 or 4 weeks before injection with preparations of iodinated LDL particles. The anti-Apob antisense oligonucleotide reduced plasma cholesterol by ≈90%. The aortic LDL permeability and degradation rates of newly entered LDL particles were reduced by ≈50% and ≈85% already after 1...... week of treatment despite an unchanged pool size of aortic iodinated LDL particles. In contrast, the size, foam cell content, and aortic pool size of iodinated LDL particles of aortic atherosclerotic plaques were not reduced until after 4 weeks of treatment with the anti-Apob antisense oligonucleotide...

Models of experimental saccular aneurysms of carotid arteries in canine

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang Haixia; Cheng Yingsheng; Li Minghua

2006-01-01

Objective: To study the availability by making experimental saccular aneurysm models of carotid arteries in canine similar to human intracranial aneurysms. Methods: Twenty healthy canines with experimental saccular side-wall aneurysms of carotid arteries were created successfully by surgery. Results: Forty experimental saccular side-wall aneurysms of carotid arteries were created successfully with 36 aneurysms and parent arteries maintaining patency with each other and four spontaneously occluded confirmed by angiography. Model successful rate reached 90%. Conclusions: Experimental saccular side-wall aneurysms of carotid arteries in canines were one of best models created for simulating human intracranial aneurysms. (authors)

Quantitative myocardial perfusion from static cardiac and dynamic arterial CT

Science.gov (United States)

Bindschadler, Michael; Branch, Kelley R.; Alessio, Adam M.

2018-05-01

Quantitative myocardial blood flow (MBF) estimation by dynamic contrast enhanced cardiac computed tomography (CT) requires multi-frame acquisition of contrast transit through the blood pool and myocardium to inform the arterial input and tissue response functions. Both the input and the tissue response functions for the entire myocardium are sampled with each acquisition. However, the long breath holds and frequent sampling can result in significant motion artifacts and relatively high radiation dose. To address these limitations, we propose and evaluate a new static cardiac and dynamic arterial (SCDA) quantitative MBF approach where (1) the input function is well sampled using either prediction from pre-scan timing bolus data or measured from dynamic thin slice ‘bolus tracking’ acquisitions, and (2) the whole-heart tissue response data is limited to one contrast enhanced CT acquisition. A perfusion model uses the dynamic arterial input function to generate a family of possible myocardial contrast enhancement curves corresponding to a range of MBF values. Combined with the timing of the single whole-heart acquisition, these curves generate a lookup table relating myocardial contrast enhancement to quantitative MBF. We tested the SCDA approach in 28 patients that underwent a full dynamic CT protocol both at rest and vasodilator stress conditions. Using measured input function plus single (enhanced CT only) or plus double (enhanced and contrast free baseline CT’s) myocardial acquisitions yielded MBF estimates with root mean square (RMS) error of 1.2 ml/min/g and 0.35 ml/min/g, and radiation dose reductions of 90% and 83%, respectively. The prediction of the input function based on timing bolus data and the static acquisition had an RMS error compared to the measured input function of 26.0% which led to MBF estimation errors greater than threefold higher than using the measured input function. SCDA presents a new, simplified approach for quantitative

Mechanical design in arteries.

Science.gov (United States)

Shadwick, R E

1999-12-01

The most important mechanical property of the artery wall is its non-linear elasticity. Over the last century, this has been well-documented in vessels in many animals, from humans to lobsters. Arteries must be distensible to provide capacitance and pulse-smoothing in the circulation, but they must also be stable to inflation over a range of pressure. These mechanical requirements are met by strain-dependent increases in the elastic modulus of the vascular wall, manifest by a J-shaped stress-strain curve, as typically exhibited by other soft biological tissues. All vertebrates and invertebrates with closed circulatory systems have arteries with this non-linear behaviour, but specific tissue properties vary to give correct function for the physiological pressure range of each species. In all cases, the non-linear elasticity is a product of the parallel arrangement of rubbery and stiff connective tissue elements in the artery wall, and differences in composition and tissue architecture can account for the observed variations in mechanical properties. This phenomenon is most pronounced in large whales, in which very high compliance in the aortic arch and exceptionally low compliance in the descending aorta occur, and is correlated with specific modifications in the arterial structure.

Omega-3 Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids: Structural and Functional Effects on the Vascular Wall

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Michela Zanetti

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (n-3 PUFA consumption is associated with reduced cardiovascular disease risk. Increasing evidence demonstrating a beneficial effect of n-3 PUFA on arterial wall properties is progressively emerging. We reviewed the recent available evidence for the cardiovascular effects of n-3 PUFA focusing on structural and functional properties of the vascular wall. In experimental studies and clinical trials n-3 PUFA have shown the ability to improve arterial hemodynamics by reducing arterial stiffness, thus explaining some of its cardioprotective properties. Recent studies suggest beneficial effects of n-3 PUFA on endothelial activation, which are likely to improve vascular function. Several molecular, cellular, and physiological pathways influenced by n-3 PUFA can affect arterial wall properties and therefore interfere with the atherosclerotic process. Although the relative weight of different physiological and molecular mechanisms and the dose-response on arterial wall properties have yet to be determined, n-3 PUFA have the potential to beneficially impact arterial wall remodeling and cardiovascular outcomes by targeting arterial wall stiffening and endothelial dysfunction.

Impact of bed rest on conduit artery remodeling: effect of exercise countermeasures.

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Duijnhoven, N.T.L. van; Green, D.J.; Felsenberg, D.; Belavy, D.L.; Hopman, M.T.E.; Thijssen, D.H.J.

2010-01-01

Physical inactivity is a potent stimulus for vascular remodeling, leading to a marked decrease in conduit artery diameter. However, little is known about the impact of physical inactivity on artery wall thickness or wall:lumen ratio or the potential of exercise countermeasures to modify artery wall

Charged domain-wall dynamics in doped antiferromagnets and spin fluctuations in cuprate superconductors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zaanen, J.; Horbach, M.L.; van Saarloos, W.

1996-01-01

Evidence is accumulating that the electron liquid in the cuprate superconductors is characterized by many-hole correlations of the charged magnetic domain-wall type. Here we focus on the strong-coupling limit where all holes are bound to domain walls. We assert that at high temperatures a classical domain-wall fluid is realized and show that the dynamics of such a fluid is characterized by spatial and temporal crossover scales set by temperature itself. The fundamental parameters of this fluid are such that the domain-wall motions dominate the low-frequency spin fluctuations and we derive predictions for the behavior of the dynamical magnetic susceptibility. We argue that a crossover occurs from a high-temperature classical to a low-temperature quantum regime, in direct analogy with helium. We discuss some general characteristics of the domain-wall quantum liquid, realized at low temperatures. copyright 1996 The American Physical Society

Sex differences in intracranial arterial bifurcations

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lindekleiv, Haakon M; Valen-Sendstad, Kristian; Morgan, Michael K

2010-01-01

Subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) is a serious condition, occurring more frequently in females than in males. SAH is mainly caused by rupture of an intracranial aneurysm, which is formed by localized dilation of the intracranial arterial vessel wall, usually at the apex of the arterial bifurcation. T....... The female preponderance is usually explained by systemic factors (hormonal influences and intrinsic wall weakness); however, the uneven sex distribution of intracranial aneurysms suggests a possible physiologic factor-a local sex difference in the intracranial arteries....

Dynamic behavior and functional integrity tests on RC shear walls

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Akino, Kinji; Nasuda, Toshiaki; Shibata, Akenori.

1991-01-01

A project consisting of seven subprojects has been conducted to study the dynamic behavior and functional integrity of reinforced concrete (RC) shear walls in reactor buildings. The objective of this project is to obtain the data to improve and prepare the seismic analysis code regarding the nonlinear structural behavior and integrity of reactor buildings during and after earthquakes. The project started in April, 1986, and will end in March, 1994. Seven subprojects are strain rate test, damping characteristic test, ultimate state response test and the verification test for the test of restoring force characteristics regarding dynamic restoring force characteristics and damping performance; the restoring force characteristic test on the shear walls with openings; and pull-out strength test and the test on air leakage through concrete cracks regarding the functional integrity. The objectives of respective subprojects, the test models and the interim results are reported. Three subprojects have been completed by March, 1990. The results of these projects will be used for the overall evaluation. The strain rate test showed that the ultimate strength of shear walls increased with strain rate. A formula for estimating air flow through the cracks in walls was given by the leakage test. (K.I.)

Quantification of common carotid artery and descending aorta vessel wall thickness from MR vessel wall imaging using a fully automated processing pipeline.

Science.gov (United States)

Gao, Shan; van 't Klooster, Ronald; Brandts, Anne; Roes, Stijntje D; Alizadeh Dehnavi, Reza; de Roos, Albert; Westenberg, Jos J M; van der Geest, Rob J

2017-01-01

To develop and evaluate a method that can fully automatically identify the vessel wall boundaries and quantify the wall thickness for both common carotid artery (CCA) and descending aorta (DAO) from axial magnetic resonance (MR) images. 3T MRI data acquired with T 1 -weighted gradient-echo black-blood imaging sequence from carotid (39 subjects) and aorta (39 subjects) were used to develop and test the algorithm. The vessel wall segmentation was achieved by respectively fitting a 3D cylindrical B-spline surface to the boundaries of lumen and outer wall. The tube-fitting was based on the edge detection performed on the signal intensity (SI) profile along the surface normal. To achieve a fully automated process, Hough Transform (HT) was developed to estimate the lumen centerline and radii for the target vessel. Using the outputs of HT, a tube model for lumen segmentation was initialized and deformed to fit the image data. Finally, lumen segmentation was dilated to initiate the adaptation procedure of outer wall tube. The algorithm was validated by determining: 1) its performance against manual tracing; 2) its interscan reproducibility in quantifying vessel wall thickness (VWT); 3) its capability of detecting VWT difference in hypertensive patients compared with healthy controls. Statistical analysis including Bland-Altman analysis, t-test, and sample size calculation were performed for the purpose of algorithm evaluation. The mean distance between the manual and automatically detected lumen/outer wall contours was 0.00 ± 0.23/0.09 ± 0.21 mm for CCA and 0.12 ± 0.24/0.14 ± 0.35 mm for DAO. No significant difference was observed between the interscan VWT assessment using automated segmentation for both CCA (P = 0.19) and DAO (P = 0.94). Both manual and automated segmentation detected significantly higher carotid (P = 0.016 and P = 0.005) and aortic (P < 0.001 and P = 0.021) wall thickness in the hypertensive patients. A reliable and reproducible pipeline for fully

Modeling and analysis of biomagnetic blood Carreau fluid flow through a stenosis artery with magnetic heat transfer: A transient study.

Science.gov (United States)

Abdollahzadeh Jamalabadi, Mohammad Yaghoub; Daqiqshirazi, Mohammadreza; Nasiri, Hossein; Safaei, Mohammad Reza; Nguyen, Truong Khang

2018-01-01

We present a numerical investigation of tapered arteries that addresses the transient simulation of non-Newtonian bio-magnetic fluid dynamics (BFD) of blood through a stenosis artery in the presence of a transverse magnetic field. The current model is consistent with ferro-hydrodynamic (FHD) and magneto-hydrodynamic (MHD) principles. In the present work, blood in small arteries is analyzed using the Carreau-Yasuda model. The arterial wall is assumed to be fixed with cosine geometry for the stenosis. A parametric study was conducted to reveal the effects of the stenosis intensity and the Hartman number on a wide range of flow parameters, such as the flow velocity, temperature, and wall shear stress. Current findings are in a good agreement with recent findings in previous research studies. The results show that wall temperature control can keep the blood in its ideal blood temperature range (below 40°C) and that a severe pressure drop occurs for blockages of more than 60 percent. Additionally, with an increase in the Ha number, a velocity drop in the blood vessel is experienced.

Domain-wall dynamics in glass-coated magnetic microwires

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Varga, R.; Zhukov, A.; Usov, N.; Blanco, J.M.; Gonzalez, J.; Zhukova, V.; Vojtanik, P.

2007-01-01

Glass-coated magnetic microwires with positive magnetostriction show peculiar domain structure that consists mostly of one large domain with magnetization-oriented axially. It was shown that small closure domains appear at the end of the microwire in order to decrease the stray fields. As a result of such domain structure, the magnetization reversal in axial direction runs through the depinning of one of such closure domains and subsequent propagation of the corresponding domain wall. Quite unusual domain-wall (DW) dynamics of the DW propagation predicted previously from the theory has been found in such amorphous microwires. In this paper, we are dealing with the DW dynamics of glass-coated microwires with small positive magnetostriction. The DW damping coming from the structural relaxation dominates at low temperatures as a result of the decrease of the mobility of the structural atomic-level defects. Negative critical propagation field points to the possible DW propagation without applied magnetic field. Probable explanation could be in terms of the effective mass of the DW

A control systems approach to quantify wall shear stress normalization by flow-mediated dilation in the brachial artery.

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Frank C G van Bussel

Full Text Available Flow-mediated dilation is aimed at normalization of local wall shear stress under varying blood flow conditions. Blood flow velocity and vessel diameter are continuous and opposing influences that modulate wall shear stress. We derived an index FMDv to quantify wall shear stress normalization performance by flow-mediated dilation in the brachial artery. In 22 fasting presumed healthy men, we first assessed intra- and inter-session reproducibilities of two indices pFMDv and mFMDv, which consider the relative peak and relative mean hyperemic change in flow velocity, respectively. Second, utilizing oral glucose loading, we evaluated the tracking performance of both FMDv indices, in comparison with existing indices [i.e., the relative peak diameter increase (%FMD, the peak to baseline diameter ratio (Dpeak/Dbase, and the relative peak diameter increase normalized to the full area under the curve of blood flow velocity with hyperemia (FMD/shearAUC or with area integrated to peak hyperemia (FMD/shearAUC_peak]. Inter-session and intra-session reproducibilities for pFMDv, mFMDv and %FMD were comparable (intra-class correlation coefficients within 0.521-0.677 range. Both pFMDv and mFMDv showed more clearly a reduction after glucose loading (reduction of ~45%, p≤0.001 than the other indices (% given are relative reductions: %FMD (~11%, p≥0.074; Dpeak/Dbase (~11%, p≥0.074; FMD/shearAUC_peak (~20%, p≥0.016 and FMD/shearAUC (~38%, p≤0.038. Further analysis indicated that wall shear stress normalization under normal (fasting conditions is already far from ideal (FMDv << 1, which (therefore does not materially change with glucose loading. Our approach might be useful in intervention studies to detect intrinsic changes in shear stress normalization performance in conduit arteries.

Elastin in large artery stiffness and hypertension

Science.gov (United States)

Wagenseil, Jessica E.; Mecham, Robert P.

2012-01-01

Large artery stiffness, as measured by pulse wave velocity (PWV), is correlated with high blood pressure and may be a causative factor in essential hypertension. The extracellular matrix components, specifically the mix of elastin and collagen in the vessel wall, determine the passive mechanical properties of the large arteries. Elastin is organized into elastic fibers in the wall during arterial development in a complex process that requires spatial and temporal coordination of numerous proteins. The elastic fibers last the lifetime of the organism, but are subject to proteolytic degradation and chemical alterations that change their mechanical properties. This review discusses how alterations in the amount, assembly, organization or chemical properties of the elastic fibers affect arterial stiffness and blood pressure. Strategies for encouraging or reversing alterations to the elastic fibers are addressed. Methods for determining the efficacy of these strategies, by measuring elastin amounts and arterial stiffness, are summarized. Therapies that have a direct effect on arterial stiffness through alterations to the elastic fibers in the wall may be an effective treatment for essential hypertension. PMID:22290157

Automated quantification of bronchiectasis, airway wall thickening and lumen tapering in chest CT

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Perez-Rovira, Adria; Kuo, Wieying; Petersen, Jens

thickness and accompanying artery radius), and inter-branch Lumen-Ratio (LR, ratio between a branch's lumen and its parent branch lumen radius, a tapering measurement) were computed. Because CF-related structural abnormalities only affect a portion of branches, the 75th percentile was used as summarising......Purpose: To automatically quantify airway structural properties visualised on CT in children with cystic fibrosis (CF) and controls, including: bronchiectasis, airway wall thickening, and lumen tapering. Methods and materials: The 3D surface of the airway lumen, outer wall, and bronchial arteries...... were obtained using a fully automatic, in-house developed, segmentation method. Subsequently, for each detected airway branch, the Airway-Artery Ratio (AAR, ratio between airway outer wall and accompanying artery radius, a bronchiectasis measurement), Wall-Artery Ratio (WAR, ratio between airway wall...

Optical wall dynamics induced by coexistence of monostable and bistable spatial regions.

Science.gov (United States)

Odent, V; Louvergneaux, E; Clerc, M G; Andrade-Silva, I

2016-11-01

When nonequilibrium extended homogeneous systems exhibit multistability, it leads to the presence of domain walls between the existing equilibria. Depending on the stability of the steady states, the dynamics differs. Here, we consider the interface dynamics in the case of a spatially inhomogeneous system, namely, an optical system where the control parameter is spatially Gaussian. Then interfaces connect the monostable and the bistable nonuniform states that are associated with two distinct spatial regions. The coexistence of these two regions of different stability induces relaxation dynamics and the propagation of a wall with a time-dependent speed. We emphasize analytically these two dynamical behaviors using a generic bistable model. Experimentally, an inhomogeneous Gaussian light beam traveling through either a dye-doped liquid crystal cell or a Kerr cavity depicts these behaviors, in agreement with the theoretical predictions.

Nuclear microprobe investigation into the trace elemental contents of carotid artery walls of apolipoprotein E deficient mice

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ren Minqin; Huang En; Beck, Konstanze; Rajendran, Reshmi; Wu, Ben J.; Halliwell, Barry; Watt, Frank; Stocker, Roland

2007-01-01

Atherosclerosis is a progressive disease that causes lesions in large and medium-sized arteries. There is increasing evidence that the function of vascular endothelial cells is impaired by oxidation reactions, and that metal ions may participate in these processes. The nuclear microscopy facility in NUS, which has the ability to focus a 2 MeV proton beam down to sub micron spot sizes, was used to investigate the trace elemental changes (e.g. Zn and Fe) in atherosclerotic lesions in the common carotid artery of apolipoprotein E deficient mice fed a high fat diet. In this preliminary study, which is part of a larger study to investigate the effects of probucol on carotid artery atherosclerosis, two sets of mice were used; a test set fed a high fat diet +1% probucol, and a control set which was fed a high fat diet only. The results show that the Zn/Fe ratio was significantly higher in the media of arteries of probucol treated animals without overlying lesion (4.3) compared to the media with overlying lesion (1.3) (p = 0.004) for test mice. For the control mice, the arterial Zn/Fe ratio was 1.8 for media without overlying lesion, compared with 1.0 for media with overlying lesion (p = 0.1). Thus, for media without overlying lesion, the Zn/Fe ratio was significantly higher (p = 0.009) in probucol-treated (4.3) than control mice (1.8), whereas there was little difference in the ratios between the two groups in media with overlying lesion (1.3 compared with 1.0). These preliminary results are consistent with the idea that the levels of iron and zinc concentrations within the artery wall may influence the formation of atherosclerotic plaque in the carotid artery

Medial arterial calcification in diabetes and its relationship to neuropathy

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jeffcoate, W J; Rasmussen, Lars Melholt; Hofbauer, L C

2009-01-01

Calcification of the media of arterial walls is common in diabetes and is particularly associated with distal symmetrical neuropathy. Arterial calcification also complicates chronic kidney disease and is an independent risk factor for cardiovascular and all-cause mortality. The term calcification......, such as calcitonin gene-related peptide, which are inherently protective. The association between distal symmetrical neuropathy and calcification of the arterial wall highlights the fact that neuropathy may be an independent risk factor for cardiovascular mortality.......Calcification of the media of arterial walls is common in diabetes and is particularly associated with distal symmetrical neuropathy. Arterial calcification also complicates chronic kidney disease and is an independent risk factor for cardiovascular and all-cause mortality. The term calcification...

Flow Velocities After Carotid Artery Stenting: Impact of Stent Design. A Fluid Dynamics Study in a Carotid Artery Model with Laser Doppler Anemometry

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Greil, Oliver; Kleinschmidt, Thomas; Weiss, Wolfgang; Wolf, Oliver; Heider, Peter; Schaffner, Silvio; Gianotti, Marc; Schmid, Thomas; Liepsch, Dieter; Berger, Hermann

2005-01-01

Purpose. To study the influence of a newly developed membrane stent design on flow patterns in a physiologic carotid artery model. Methods. Three different stents were positioned in silicone models of the carotid artery: a stainless steel stent (Wall-stent), a nitinol stent (SelfX), and a nitinol stent with a semipermeable membrane (MembraX). To increase the contact area of the membrane with the vessel wall, another MembranX model was modified at the outflow tract. The membrane consists of a biocompatible silicone-polyurethane copolymer (Elast-Eon) with a pore size of 100 μm. All stents were deployed across the bifurcation and the external carotid artery origin. Flow velocity measurements were performed with laser Doppler anemometry (LDA), using pulsatile flow conditions (Re = 220; flow 0.39 l/min; flow rate ratio ICA:ECA = 70:30) in hemodynamically relevant cross-sections. The hemodynamic changes were analyzed by comparing velocity fluctuations of corresponding flow profiles. Results. The flow rate ratio ICA:ECA shifted significantly from 70/30 to 73.9/26.1 in the MembraX and remained nearly unchanged in the SelfX and Wallstent. There were no changes in the flow patterns at the inflow proximal to the stents. In the stent no relevant changes were found in the SelfX. In the Wallstent the separation zone shifted from the orifice of the ICA to the distal end of the stent. Four millimeters distal to the SelfX and the Wallstent the flow profile returned to normal. In the MembraX an increase in the central slipstreams was found with creation of a flow separation distal to the stent. With a modification of the membrane this flow separation vanished. In the ECA flow disturbances were seen at the inner wall distal to the stent struts in the SelfX and the Wallstent. With the MembraX a calming of flow could be observed in the ECA with a slight loss of flow volume. Conclusions. Stent placement across the carotid artery bifurcation induces alterations of the physiologic flow

The value of regional wall motion abnormalities on 99Tcm-MIBI gated cardiac SPECT in predicting angiographic stenoses of coronary artery

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li Dianfu; Huang Jun; Zhu Tiebing; Wang Liansheng; Yang Zhijian; Feng Jianlin; Li Jianhua; Chen Jianwei; Chang Guojun

2004-01-01

Objective: To determine the magnitude of angiographic stenoses of coronary artery in reversible regional wall motion abnormalities (RWMA) present in exercise stress 99 Tc m -methoxyisobutylisonitrile (MIBI) gated SPECT myocardial perfusion imaging (MPI). Methods: One hundred and sixteen patients undergoing coronary angiography two weeks before and after the exercise stress 99 Tc m -MIBI gated SPECT MPI. Images were acquired 15 to 20 min after stress. A five grades and twenty segments marking system was introduced to assess the RWMA and thickening of left ventricles. Results: The sensitivity of reversible RWMA for detecting ≥75% angiographic stenoses was 65%, with a specificity of 97%. Reversible RWMA has a high positive predictive value (98%) for stratification between severe angiographic stenoses of 75% and non-severe stenoses (less than 75%). Multivariate analysis showed that the post-stress wall motion (SSSWM), exercise wall motion differentiation value (SDSWM) and summed stress score (SSS) were the independent risk factor of coronary artery jeopardy score. Conclusions: Reversible RWMA, as shown by exercise stress 99 Tc m -MIBI gated SPECT MPI, is a significant predictor of angiographic disease with very high specificity and positive predictive values. Exercise reversible RWMA can rise the assessment value of angiographic severity in MPI

Quantification of Horseradish Peroxidase Delivery into the Arterial Wall In Vivo as a Model of Local Drug Treatment: Comparison Between a Porous and a Gel-Coated Balloon Catheter

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dick, Armin; Kromen, Wolfgang; Juengling, Eberhard; Grosskortenhaus, Stephanie; Kammermeier, Helmut; Vorwerk, Dierk; Guenther, Rolf W.

1999-01-01

Purpose: To quantify horseradish peroxidase (HRP) delivery into the arterial wall, as a model of local drug delivery, and to compare two different percutaneous delivery balloons. Methods: Perforated and hydrophilic hydrogel-coated balloon catheters were used to deliver HRP in aqueous solution into the wall of porcine iliac arteries in vivo. HRP solutions of 1 mg/ml were used together with both perforated and hydrophilic hydrogel-coated balloon catheters and 40 mg/ml HRP solutions were used with the hydrogel-coated balloon only. The amount of HRP deposited in the arterial wall was then determined photospectrometrically. Results: Using the 1 mg/ml HRP solution, the hydrogel-coated balloon absorbed 0.047 mg HRP into the coating. Treatment with this balloon resulted in a mean vessel wall concentration of 7.4 μg HRP/g tissue ± 93% (standard deviation) (n 7). Treatment with the hydrogel-coated balloon that had absorbed 1.88 mg HRP into the coating (using the 40 mg/ml HRP solution) led to a mean vessel wall concentration of 69.5 μg HRP/g tissue ± 74% (n = 7). Treatment with the perforated balloon using 1 mg/ml aqueous HRP solution led to a mean vessel wall concentration of 174 μg/g ± 81% (n = 7). Differences between the hydrogel-coated and perforated balloons (1 mg/g solutions of HRP) and between hydrogel-coated balloons (0.047 mg vs 1.88 mg absorbed into the balloon coating) were significant (p < 0.05; two-sided Wilcoxon test). Conclusions: The use of a perforated balloon catheter allowed the delivery of a higher total amount of HRP compared with the hydrogel-coated balloon, but at the cost of a higher systemic HRP application. To deliver 174 μg HRP per gram of vessel wall with the perforated balloon, 6.5 ± 1.5 mg HRP were lost into the arterial blood (delivery efficiency range = 0.2%-0.3%). With 0.047 mg HRP loaded into the coating of the hydrogel balloon, 7.4 μg HRP could be applied to 1 g of vessel wall (delivery efficiency 1.7%), and with 1.88 mg HRP loaded

Dynamic CT brain scanning in the haemodynamic evaluation of cerebral arterial occlusive disease

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Davis, S.M.; Melbourne Univ.; Tress, B.M.; Hopper, J.L.; Rossiter, S.C.; Kaye, A.H.

1987-01-01

Dynamic cerebral CT scanning (DCT) was used to quantitatively analyse the haemodynamic effects of extracranial and intracranial arterial occlusive lesions in 17 patients with TIA's or minor cerebral infarcts. Using DCT and gamma variate curve fitting, mean transit times were determined for the terminal internal carotid arteries, middle cerebral arteries and middle cerebral-supplied Sylvian cortex at the level of the Circle of Willis. Six patients were studied sequentially, four before and after transcranial bypass surgery. No arterial or tissue delays were found in patients without haemodynamic arterial lesions or cortical infarcts. Seven of nine patients with haemodynamic, extracranial carotid lesions showed ipsilateral delays in arterial or tissue transit times. Tissue delays usually correlated with CT or clinical evidence of infarction. Improved haemodynamics in patients re-studied correlated with the effects of surgery or clinical recovery. DCT has several important limitations but has the potential to provide additional haemodynamic information about the cerebral circulation in selected patients with cerebral arterial occlusive disease. (orig.)

Gravitational domain walls and the dynamics of the gravitational constant G

Science.gov (United States)

Bunster, Claudio; Gomberoff, Andrés

2017-07-01

From the point of view of elementary particle physics, the gravitational constant G is extraordinarily small. This has led to asking whether it could have decayed to its present value from an initial one commensurate with microscopical units. A mechanism that leads to such a decay is proposed herein. It is based on assuming that G may take different values within regions of the universe separated by a novel kind of domain wall, a "G -wall." The idea is implemented by introducing a gauge potential Aμ ν ρ, and its conjugate D , which determines the value of G as an integration constant rather than a fundamental constant. The value of G jumps when one goes through a G -wall. The procedure extends one previously developed for the cosmological constant, but the generalization is far from straightforward: (i) The intrinsic geometry of a G -wall is not the same as seen from its two sides because the second law of black hole thermodynamics mandates that the jump in G must cause a discontinuity in the scale of length. (ii) The size of the decay step in G is controlled by a function G (D ) which may be chosen so as to diminish the value of G towards the asymptote G =0 . It is shown that: (i) The dynamics of the gravitational field with G treated as a dynamical variable, coupled to G -walls and matter, follows from an action principle, which is given. (ii) A particle that impinges on a G -wall may be refracted or reflected. (iii) The various forces between two particles change when a G -wall is inserted in between them. (iv) G -walls may be nucleated trough tunneling and thermal effects, whose semiclassical probabilities are evaluated. (v) If the action principle is constructed properly, the entropy of a black hole increases when the value of the gravitational constant is changed through the absorption of a G-wall by the hole.

Ultrasonically induced dynamics of a contrast agent microbubble between two parallel elastic walls

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Doinikov, Alexander A; Bouakaz, Ayache

2013-01-01

This work presents the derivation of a Rayleigh–Plesset-like equation that describes the radial oscillation of a contrast agent microbubble between two elastic walls, assuming that the bubble is attached to one of them. The obtained equation is then used in numerical simulations in order to establish how the presence of the second wall affects the resonance properties and the scattered echo of the contrast microbubble. The effect of encapsulation on the dynamics of the microbubble is simulated by the Marmottant shell model which is commonly used for the modeling of the dynamics of lipid-shelled contrast agents. Two cases are examined. In the first, the mechanical properties of the walls are set to correspond to OptiCell chambers which are widely used in experiments on microbubble contrast agents. In the second, the properties of the walls correspond to walls of blood vessels. It is shown that the presence of the second wall increases the resonance frequency of the contrast microbubble and decreases the amplitudes of the radial oscillation and the scattered echo of the microbubble as compared to the case that the second wall is absent. It is also shown that the presence of the second wall can change noticeably the intensity of the second harmonic in the spectrum of the scattered pressure. It is demonstrated that, depending on the value of the driving frequency, the presence of the second wall can either increase or decrease the intensity of the second harmonic as compared to its intensity in the case that the second wall is absent. (paper)

Characterization and modeling of magnetic domain wall dynamics using reconstituted hysteresis loops from Barkhausen noise

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ducharne, B., E-mail: Benjamin.ducharne@insa-lyon.fr; Le, M.Q.; Sebald, G.; Cottinet, P.J.; Guyomar, D.; Hebrard, Y.

2017-06-15

Highlights: • Barkhausen noise energy versus excitation field hysteresis cycles MBN{sub energy}(H). • Difference in the dynamics of the induction field B and of the MBN{sub energy}. • Dynamic behavior of MBN{sub energy}(H) cycles is first-order. • Dynamic behavior of B(H) cycles is non-entire order. - Abstract: By means of a post-processing technique, we succeeded in plotting magnetic Barkhausen noise energy hysteresis cycles MBN{sub energy}(H). These cycles were compared to the usual hysteresis cycles, displaying the evolution of the magnetic induction field B versus the magnetic excitation H. The divergence between these comparisons as the excitation frequency was increased gave rise to the conclusion that there was a difference in the dynamics of the induction field and of the MBN{sub energy} related to the domain wall movements. Indeed, for the MBN{sub energy} hysteresis cycle, merely the domain wall movements were involved. On the other hand, for the usual B(H) cycle, two dynamic contributions were observed: domain wall movements and diffusion of the magnetic field excitation. From a simulation point of view, it was demonstrated that over a large frequency bandwidth a correct dynamic behavior of the domain wall movement MBN{sub energy}(H) cycle could be taken into account using first-order derivation whereas fractional orders were required for the B(H) cycles. The present article also gives a detailed description of how to use the developed process to obtain the MBN{sub energy}(H) hysteresis cycle as well as its evolution as the frequency increases. Moreover, this article provides an interesting explanation of the separation of magnetic loss contributions through a magnetic sample: a wall movement contribution varying according to first-order dynamics and a diffusion contribution which in a lump model can be taken into account using fractional order dynamics.

Structural alterations of the coronary arterial wall are associated with myocardial flow heterogeneity in type 2 diabetes mellitus

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schindler, Thomas H.; Facta, Alvaro D.; Prior, John O.; Cadenas, Jerson; Zhang, Xiao-Li; Sayre, James; Goldin, Jonathan; Schelbert, Heinrich R.

2009-01-01

To determine the relationship between carotid intima-media thickness (IMT), coronary artery calcification (CAC), and myocardial blood flow (MBF) at rest and during vasomotor stress in type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM). In 68 individuals, carotid IMT was measured using high-resolution vascular ultrasound, while the presence of CAC was determined with electron beam tomography (EBT). Global and regional MBF was determined in milliliters per gram per minute with 13 N-ammonia and positron emission tomography (PET) at rest, during cold pressor testing (CPT), and during adenosine (ADO) stimulation. There was neither a relationship between carotid IMT and CAC (r = 0.10, p = 0.32) nor between carotid IMT and coronary circulatory function in response to CPT and during ADO (r = -0.18, p = 0.25 and r = 0.10, p = 0.54, respectively). In 33 individuals, EBT detected CAC with a mean Agatston-derived calcium score of 44 ± 18. There was a significant difference in regional MBFs between territories with and without CAC at rest and during ADO-stimulated hyperemia (0.69 ± 0.24 vs. 0.74 ± 0.23 and 1.82 ± 0.50 vs. 1.95 ± 0.51 ml/g/min; p ≤ 0.05, respectively) and also during CPT in DM but less pronounced (0.81 ± 0.24 vs. 0.83 ± 0.23 ml/g/min; p = ns). The increase in CAC was paralleled with a progressive regional decrease in resting as well as in CPT- and ADO-related MBFs (r = -0.36, p ≤ 0.014; r = -0.46, p ≤ 0.007; and r = -0.33, p ≤ 0.041, respectively). The absence of any correlation between carotid IMT and coronary circulatory function in type 2 DM suggests different features and stages of early atherosclerosis in the peripheral and coronary circulation. PET-measured MBF heterogeneity at rest and during vasomotor stress may reflect downstream fluid dynamic effects of coronary artery disease (CAD)-related early structural alterations of the arterial wall. (orig.)

Smooth Muscle Specific Overexpression of p22phox Potentiates Carotid Artery Wall Thickening in Response to Injury

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Michael R. Manogue

2015-01-01

Full Text Available We hypothesized that transgenic mice overexpressing the p22phox subunit of the NADPH oxidase selectively in smooth muscle (Tgp22smc would exhibit an exacerbated response to transluminal carotid injury compared to wild-type mice. To examine the role of reactive oxygen species (ROS as a mediator of vascular injury, the injury response was quantified by measuring wall thickness (WT and cross-sectional wall area (CSWA of the injured and noninjured arteries in both Tgp22smc and wild-type animals at days 3, 7, and 14 after injury. Akt, p38 MAPK, and Src activation were evaluated at the same time points using Western blotting. WT and CSWA following injury were significantly greater in Tgp22smc mice at both 7 and 14 days after injury while noninjured contralateral carotids were similar between groups. Apocynin treatment attenuated the injury response in both groups and rendered the response similar between Tgp22smc mice and wild-type mice. Following injury, carotid arteries from Tgp22smc mice demonstrated elevated activation of Akt at day 3, while p38 MAPK and Src activation was elevated at day 7 compared to wild-type mice. Both increased activation and temporal regulation of these signaling pathways may contribute to enhanced vascular growth in response to injury in this transgenic model of elevated vascular ROS.

Mapping of the seasonal dynamic properties of building walls in actual periodic conditions and effects produced by solar radiation incident on the outer and inner surfaces of the wall

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mazzeo, D.; Oliveti, G.; Arcuri, N.

2016-01-01

Highlights: • Dynamic thermal behaviour of building walls subjected to actual periodic loadings. • Dynamic parameters of wall in terms of energy and of heat flux are defined. • Different solar absorption coefficients and orientations of wall are considered. • On the internal surface is present or absent a shortwave radiant field. • Seasonal thermal characteristics for different plant operating regime are provided. - Abstract: In this work, the dynamic characteristics of the external walls of air-conditioned buildings subject to the joint action of periodic non-sinusoidal external and internal loadings are determined. The dynamic parameters used are the energy decrement factor, which is evaluated by means of the fluctuating heat flux in a semi-period exiting and entering the wall, the decrement factor of the maximum peak and minimum peak of the heat flux in a period and the relative time lags. The fluctuating heat flux in the wall in steady periodic regime conditions is determined with an analytical model obtained by resolving the equivalent electrical circuit. The preceding parameters are used for a study of the influence of solar radiation on the dynamic characteristics of the walls in summer and winter air-conditioning. Solar radiation is considered as operating on the external surface and on the internal surface due to the presence in the indoor environments of a shortwave radiant field. The absorbed solar heat flux by the external surface varies, modifying the solar absorption coefficient and wall orientation. Indoors, we considered a continuous operating regime of the plant and a regime with nocturnal attenuation. The results obtained, relating to 1152 different boundary conditions, were used for the construction of maps of dynamic characteristics, different on variation of the plant functioning regime and of the shortwave radiant load on the internal surface. The maps show the dependence of the decrement factors and of the time lags on variation of

Gravity-induced dynamics of a squirmer microswimmer in wall proximity

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Rühle, Felix; Blaschke, Johannes; Kuhr, Jan-Timm; Stark, Holger

2018-02-01

We perform hydrodynamic simulations using the method of multi-particle collision dynamics and a theoretical analysis to study a single squirmer microswimmer at high Péclet number, which moves in a low Reynolds number fluid and under gravity. The relevant parameters are the ratio α of swimming to bulk sedimentation velocity and the squirmer type β. The combination of self-propulsion, gravitational force, hydrodynamic interactions with the wall, and thermal noise leads to a surprisingly diverse behavior. At α > 1 we observe cruising states, while for α < 1 the squirmer resides close to the bottom wall with the motional state determined by stable fixed points in height and orientation. They strongly depend on the squirmer type β. While neutral squirmers permanently float above the wall with upright orientation, pullers float for α larger than a threshold value {α }th} and are pinned to the wall below {α }th}. In contrast, pushers slide along the wall at lower heights, from which thermal orientational fluctuations drive them into a recurrent floating state with upright orientation, where they remain on the timescale of orientational persistence.

A comparative analysis of double inversion recovery TFE and TSE sequences on carotid artery wall imaging

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen Jun; Di Yujin; Bu Chunqing; Zhang Yanfeng; Li Shuhua

2012-01-01

Objective: To analyze the characteristics of double inversion recovery (DIR) turbo field echo (TFE) and turbo spin echo (TSE) sequences and explore the value of double inversion recovery TFE sequence on carotid artery wall imaging. Patients and methods: 56 patients (32 males and 24 females, aged 31–76 years with a mean age of 53 years) were performed with DIR TFE and DIR TSE T1 weighted imaging (T1WI) sequences on carotid artery bifurcations. Image quality acquired by different techniques were evaluated and scored by two physicians. Whether there is significant difference is determined by SPSS 11.0 software. Paired-samples t test was used for statistics. Results: There was no significant difference in the image quality scores between two sequences (t = 0.880, P = 0.383 > 0.05). Conclusions: DIR TFE sequence has short scanning time and high spatial resolution. DIR TFE sequence can be used as the preferred sequence for screening carotid atherosclerotic plaque compared with DIR TSE sequence.

Severe gastric variceal haemorrhage due to splenic artery thrombosis and consecutive arterial bypass

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Wasmuth Hermann E

2011-06-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Upper gastrointestinal haemorrhage is mainly caused by ulcers. Gastric varicosis due to portal hypertension can also be held responsible for upper gastrointestinal bleeding. Portal hypertension causes the development of a collateral circulation from the portal to the caval venous system resulting in development of oesophageal and gastric fundus varices. Those may also be held responsible for upper gastrointestinal haemorrhage. Case presentation In this study, we describe the case of a 69-year-old male with recurrent severe upper gastrointestinal bleeding caused by arterial submucosal collaterals due to idiopathic splenic artery thrombosis. The diagnosis was secured using endoscopic duplex ultrasound and angiography. The patient was successfully treated with a laparoscopic splenectomy and complete dissection of the short gastric arteries, resulting in the collapse of the submucosal arteries in the gastric wall. Follow-up gastroscopy was performed on the 12th postoperative week and showed no signs of bleeding and a significant reduction in the arterial blood flow within the gastric wall. Subsequent follow-up after 6 months also showed no further gastrointestinal bleeding as well as subjective good quality of life for the patient. Conclusion Submucosal arterial collaterals must be excluded by endosonography via endoscopy in case of recurrent upper gastrointestinal bleeding. Laparoscopic splenectomy provides adequate treatment in preventing any recurrent bleeding, if gastric arterial collaterals are caused by splenic artery thrombosis.

A Computational Model for Biomechanical Effects of Arterial Compliance Mismatch

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Fan He

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Background. Compliance mismatch is a negative factor and it needs to be considered in arterial bypass grafting. Objective. A computational model was employed to investigate the effects of arterial compliance mismatch on blood flow, wall stress, and deformation. Methods. The unsteady blood flow was assumed to be laminar, Newtonian, viscous, and incompressible. The vessel wall was assumed to be linear elastic, isotropic, and incompressible. The fluid-wall interaction scheme was constructed using the finite element method. Results. The results show that there are identical wall shear stress waveforms, wall stress, and strain waveforms at different locations. The comparison of the results demonstrates that wall shear stresses and wall strains are higher while wall stresses are lower at the more compliant section. The differences promote the probability of intimal thickening at some locations. Conclusions. The model is effective and gives satisfactory results. It could be extended to all kinds of arteries with complicated geometrical and material factors.

Nonlinear Dynamics of a Bubble Contrast Agent Oscillating near an Elastic Wall

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Garashchuk, Ivan R.; Sinelshchikov, Dmitry I.; Kudryashov, Nikolay A.

2018-05-01

Contrast agent microbubbles, which are encapsulated gas bubbles, are widely used to enhance ultrasound imaging. There are also several new promising applications of the contrast agents such as targeted drug delivery and noninvasive therapy. Here we study three models of the microbubble dynamics: a nonencapsulated bubble oscillating close to an elastic wall, a simple coated bubble and a coated bubble near an elastic wall.We demonstrate that complex dynamics can occur in these models. We are particularly interested in the multistability phenomenon of bubble dynamics. We show that coexisting attractors appear in all of these models, but for higher acoustic pressures for the models of an encapsulated bubble.We demonstrate how several tools can be used to localize the coexisting attractors. We provide some considerations why the multistability can be undesirable for applications.

High-Resolution 3 T MR Microscopy Imaging of Arterial Walls

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sailer, Johannes; Rand, Thomas; Berg, Andreas; Sulzbacher, Irene; Peloschek, P.; Hoelzenbein, Thomas; Lammer, Johannes

2006-01-01

Purpose. To achieve a high spatial resolution in MR imaging that allows for clear visualization of anatomy and even histology and documentation of plaque morphology in in vitro samples from patients with advanced atherosclerosis. A further objective of our study was to evaluate whether T2-weighted high-resolution MR imaging can provide accurate classification of atherosclerotic plaque according to a modified American Heart Association classification. Methods. T2-weighted images of arteries were obtained in 13 in vitro specimens using a 3 T MR unit (Medspec 300 Avance/Bruker, Ettlingen, Germany) combined with a dedicated MR microscopy system. Measurement parameters were: T2-weighted sequences with TR 3.5 sec, TE 15-120 msec; field of view (FOV) 1.4 x 1.4; NEX 8; matrix 192; and slice thickness 600 μm. MR measurements were compared with corresponding histologic sections. Results. We achieved excellent spatial and contrast resolution in all specimens. We found high agreement between MR images and histology with regard to the morphology and extent of intimal proliferations in all but 2 specimens. We could differentiate fibrous caps and calcifications from lipid plaque components based on differences in signal intensity in order to differentiate hard and soft atheromatous plaques. Hard plaques with predominantly intimal calcifications were found in 7 specimens, and soft plaques with a cholesterol/lipid content in 5 cases. In all specimens, hemorrhage or thrombus formation, and fibrotic and hyalinized tissue could be detected on both MR imaging and histopathology. Conclusion. High-resolution, high-field MR imaging of arterial walls demonstrates the morphologic features, volume, and extent of intimal proliferations with high spatial and contrast resolution in in vitro specimens and can differentiate hard and soft plaques

Automated registration of multispectral MR vessel wall images of the carotid artery

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Klooster, R. van ' t; Staring, M.; Reiber, J. H. C.; Lelieveldt, B. P. F.; Geest, R. J. van der, E-mail: rvdgeest@lumc.nl [Department of Radiology, Division of Image Processing, Leiden University Medical Center, 2300 RC Leiden (Netherlands); Klein, S. [Department of Radiology and Department of Medical Informatics, Biomedical Imaging Group Rotterdam, Erasmus MC, Rotterdam 3015 GE (Netherlands); Kwee, R. M.; Kooi, M. E. [Department of Radiology, Cardiovascular Research Institute Maastricht, Maastricht University Medical Center, Maastricht 6202 AZ (Netherlands)

2013-12-15

Purpose: Atherosclerosis is the primary cause of heart disease and stroke. The detailed assessment of atherosclerosis of the carotid artery requires high resolution imaging of the vessel wall using multiple MR sequences with different contrast weightings. These images allow manual or automated classification of plaque components inside the vessel wall. Automated classification requires all sequences to be in alignment, which is hampered by patient motion. In clinical practice, correction of this motion is performed manually. Previous studies applied automated image registration to correct for motion using only nondeformable transformation models and did not perform a detailed quantitative validation. The purpose of this study is to develop an automated accurate 3D registration method, and to extensively validate this method on a large set of patient data. In addition, the authors quantified patient motion during scanning to investigate the need for correction. Methods: MR imaging studies (1.5T, dedicated carotid surface coil, Philips) from 55 TIA/stroke patients with ipsilateral <70% carotid artery stenosis were randomly selected from a larger cohort. Five MR pulse sequences were acquired around the carotid bifurcation, each containing nine transverse slices: T1-weighted turbo field echo, time of flight, T2-weighted turbo spin-echo, and pre- and postcontrast T1-weighted turbo spin-echo images (T1W TSE). The images were manually segmented by delineating the lumen contour in each vessel wall sequence and were manually aligned by applying throughplane and inplane translations to the images. To find the optimal automatic image registration method, different masks, choice of the fixed image, different types of the mutual information image similarity metric, and transformation models including 3D deformable transformation models, were evaluated. Evaluation of the automatic registration results was performed by comparing the lumen segmentations of the fixed image and

Automated registration of multispectral MR vessel wall images of the carotid artery

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Klooster, R. van 't; Staring, M.; Reiber, J. H. C.; Lelieveldt, B. P. F.; Geest, R. J. van der; Klein, S.; Kwee, R. M.; Kooi, M. E.

2013-01-01

Purpose: Atherosclerosis is the primary cause of heart disease and stroke. The detailed assessment of atherosclerosis of the carotid artery requires high resolution imaging of the vessel wall using multiple MR sequences with different contrast weightings. These images allow manual or automated classification of plaque components inside the vessel wall. Automated classification requires all sequences to be in alignment, which is hampered by patient motion. In clinical practice, correction of this motion is performed manually. Previous studies applied automated image registration to correct for motion using only nondeformable transformation models and did not perform a detailed quantitative validation. The purpose of this study is to develop an automated accurate 3D registration method, and to extensively validate this method on a large set of patient data. In addition, the authors quantified patient motion during scanning to investigate the need for correction. Methods: MR imaging studies (1.5T, dedicated carotid surface coil, Philips) from 55 TIA/stroke patients with ipsilateral <70% carotid artery stenosis were randomly selected from a larger cohort. Five MR pulse sequences were acquired around the carotid bifurcation, each containing nine transverse slices: T1-weighted turbo field echo, time of flight, T2-weighted turbo spin-echo, and pre- and postcontrast T1-weighted turbo spin-echo images (T1W TSE). The images were manually segmented by delineating the lumen contour in each vessel wall sequence and were manually aligned by applying throughplane and inplane translations to the images. To find the optimal automatic image registration method, different masks, choice of the fixed image, different types of the mutual information image similarity metric, and transformation models including 3D deformable transformation models, were evaluated. Evaluation of the automatic registration results was performed by comparing the lumen segmentations of the fixed image and

Low-Dose Fluvastatin and Valsartan Rejuvenate the Arterial Wall Through Telomerase Activity Increase in Middle-Aged Men.

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Janić, Miodrag; Lunder, Mojca; Cerkovnik, Petra; Prosenc Zmrzljak, Uršula; Novaković, Srdjan; Šabovič, Mišo

2016-04-01

Previously, we have shown that slightly to moderately aged arteries in middle-aged males can be rejuvenated functionally by sub-therapeutic, low-dose fluvastatin and valsartan treatment. Here, we explore whether this treatment could also increase telomerase activity. We hypothesized that telomerase activity might be associated with (1) an improvement of arterial wall properties and (2) a reduction of inflammatory/oxidative stress parameters (both observed in our previous studies). The stored blood samples from 130 apparently healthy middle-aged males treated with fluvastatin (10 mg daily), valsartan (20 mg daily), fluvastatin and valsartan combination (10 and 20 mg), respectively, and placebo (control), were analyzed. The samples were taken before and after treatment lasting 30 days, and 5 months after treatment discontinuation. Telomerase activity was measured in blood leukocytes by a TaqMan Gene Expression Assay. Low-dose fluvastatin or valsartan increased telomerase activity (106.9% and 59.5% respectively; both p valsartan substantially increased telomerase activity, which significantly correlated with an improvement of endothelial function and a decrease of inflammation/oxidative stress. These findings could lead to a new innovative approach to arterial rejuvenation.

Asymmetric driven dynamics of Dzyaloshinskii domain walls in ultrathin ferromagnetic strips with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sánchez-Tejerina, L. [Dpto. Electricidad y Electrónica, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Valladolid, 47011 Valladolid (Spain); Alejos, Ó., E-mail: oscaral@ee.uva.es [Dpto. Electricidad y Electrónica, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Valladolid, 47011 Valladolid (Spain); Martínez, E. [Dpto. Física Aplicada, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Salamanca, 37011 Salamanca (Spain); Muñoz, J.M. [Dpto. Electricidad y Electrónica, Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad de Valladolid, 47011 Valladolid (Spain)

2016-07-01

The dynamics of domain walls in ultrathin ferromagnetic strips with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy is studied from both numerical and analytical micromagnetics. The influence of a moderate interfacial Dzyaloshinskii–Moriya interaction associated to a bi-layer strip arrangement has been considered, giving rise to the formation of Dzyaloshinskii domain walls. Such walls possess under equilibrium conditions an inner magnetization structure defined by a certain orientation angle that make them to be considered as intermediate configurations between Bloch and Néel walls. Two different dynamics are considered, a field-driven and a current-driven dynamics, in particular, the one promoted by the spin torque due to the spin-Hall effect. Results show an inherent asymmetry associated with the rotation of the domain wall magnetization orientation before reaching the stationary regime, characterized by a constant terminal speed. For a certain initial DW magnetization orientation at rest, the rotation determines whether the reorientation of the DW magnetization prior to reach stationary motion is smooth or abrupt. This asymmetry affects the DW motion, which can even reverse for a short period of time. Additionally, it is found that the terminal speed in the case of the current-driven dynamics may depend on either the initial DW magnetization orientation at rest or the sign of the longitudinally injected current. - Highlights: • The asymmetric response of domain walls in bilayer strips with PMA is studied. • Out-of-plane fields and SHE longitudinal currents are applied. • The response is associated to the rotation of the domain wall inner magnetization. • Clockwise and counter-clockwise magnetization rotations are not equivalent. • The asymmetry results in different travelled distances and/or terminal speeds.

Asymmetric driven dynamics of Dzyaloshinskii domain walls in ultrathin ferromagnetic strips with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sánchez-Tejerina, L.; Alejos, Ó.; Martínez, E.; Muñoz, J.M.

2016-01-01

The dynamics of domain walls in ultrathin ferromagnetic strips with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy is studied from both numerical and analytical micromagnetics. The influence of a moderate interfacial Dzyaloshinskii–Moriya interaction associated to a bi-layer strip arrangement has been considered, giving rise to the formation of Dzyaloshinskii domain walls. Such walls possess under equilibrium conditions an inner magnetization structure defined by a certain orientation angle that make them to be considered as intermediate configurations between Bloch and Néel walls. Two different dynamics are considered, a field-driven and a current-driven dynamics, in particular, the one promoted by the spin torque due to the spin-Hall effect. Results show an inherent asymmetry associated with the rotation of the domain wall magnetization orientation before reaching the stationary regime, characterized by a constant terminal speed. For a certain initial DW magnetization orientation at rest, the rotation determines whether the reorientation of the DW magnetization prior to reach stationary motion is smooth or abrupt. This asymmetry affects the DW motion, which can even reverse for a short period of time. Additionally, it is found that the terminal speed in the case of the current-driven dynamics may depend on either the initial DW magnetization orientation at rest or the sign of the longitudinally injected current. - Highlights: • The asymmetric response of domain walls in bilayer strips with PMA is studied. • Out-of-plane fields and SHE longitudinal currents are applied. • The response is associated to the rotation of the domain wall inner magnetization. • Clockwise and counter-clockwise magnetization rotations are not equivalent. • The asymmetry results in different travelled distances and/or terminal speeds.

An efficient parallel simulation of unsteady blood flows in patient-specific pulmonary artery.

Science.gov (United States)

Kong, Fande; Kheyfets, Vitaly; Finol, Ender; Cai, Xiao-Chuan

2018-04-01

Simulation of blood flows in the pulmonary artery provides some insight into certain diseases by examining the relationship between some continuum metrics, eg, the wall shear stress acting on the vascular endothelium, which responds to flow-induced mechanical forces by releasing vasodilators/constrictors. V. Kheyfets, in his previous work, studies numerically a patient-specific pulmonary circulation to show that decreasing wall shear stress is correlated with increasing pulmonary vascular impedance. In this paper, we develop a scalable parallel algorithm based on domain decomposition methods to investigate an unsteady model with patient-specific pulsatile waveforms as the inlet boundary condition. The unsteady model offers tremendously more information about the dynamic behavior of the flow field, but computationally speaking, the simulation is a lot more expensive since a problem which is similar to the steady-state problem has to be solved many times, and therefore, the traditional sequential approach is not suitable anymore. We show computationally that simulations using the proposed parallel approach with up to 10 000 processor cores can be obtained with much reduced compute time. This makes the technology potentially usable for the routine study of the dynamic behavior of blood flows in the pulmonary artery, in particular, the changes of the blood flows and the wall shear stress in the spatial and temporal dimensions. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Numerical modeling of dynamics of heart rate and arterial pressure during passive orthostatic test

Science.gov (United States)

Ishbulatov, Yu. M.; Kiselev, A. R.; Karavaev, A. S.

2018-04-01

A model of human cardiovascular system is proposed to describe the main heart rhythm, influence of autonomous regulation on frequency and strength of heart contractions and resistance of arterial vessels; process of formation of arterial pressure during systolic and diastolic phases; influence of respiration; synchronization between loops of autonomous regulation. The proposed model is used to simulate the dynamics of heart rate and arterial pressure during passive transition from supine to upright position. Results of mathematical modeling are compared to original experimental data.

Combined centroid-envelope dynamics of intense, magnetically focused charged beams surrounded by conducting walls

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fiuza, K.; Rizzato, F.B.; Pakter, R.

2006-01-01

In this paper we analyze the combined envelope-centroid dynamics of magnetically focused high-intensity charged beams surrounded by conducting walls. Similar to the case where conducting walls are absent, it is shown that the envelope and centroid dynamics decouple from each other. Mismatched envelopes still decay into equilibrium with simultaneous emittance growth, but the centroid keeps oscillating with no appreciable energy loss. Some estimates are performed to analytically obtain characteristics of halo formation seen in the full simulations

Transcatheter arterial embolization of a pseudoaneurysm of gastroduodenal artery: a case report

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Han, Young Min; Kang, Sung Soo; Lee, Jeong Min; Chung, Jin Young; Lee, Sang Yong; Chung, Gyung Ho; Kim, Chong Soo; Sohn, Myung Hee; Choi, Ki Chul [Chonbuk National University School of Medicine, Chonju (Korea, Republic of)

1997-01-01

Gastroduodenal artery pseudoaneurysm is a relatively rare and potentionally life-threatening complication of chronic pancreatitis, which is thought to occur because of autodigestion of arterial walls by pancreatic enzymes. Embolotherapy should probably be the first method of treatment, since surgical treatment carries a high risk of mortality and morbidity. We report the case of 30-year-old male with gastroduodenal artery pseudoaneurysm caused by chronic pancreatitis which was successfully treated by transcatheter embolization using Gianturco spring coils.

Transcatheter arterial embolization of a pseudoaneurysm of gastroduodenal artery: a case report

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Han, Young Min; Kang, Sung Soo; Lee, Jeong Min; Chung, Jin Young; Lee, Sang Yong; Chung, Gyung Ho; Kim, Chong Soo; Sohn, Myung Hee; Choi, Ki Chul

1997-01-01

Gastroduodenal artery pseudoaneurysm is a relatively rare and potentionally life-threatening complication of chronic pancreatitis, which is thought to occur because of autodigestion of arterial walls by pancreatic enzymes. Embolotherapy should probably be the first method of treatment, since surgical treatment carries a high risk of mortality and morbidity. We report the case of 30-year-old male with gastroduodenal artery pseudoaneurysm caused by chronic pancreatitis which was successfully treated by transcatheter embolization using Gianturco spring coils

Hemodynamics alter arterial low-density lipoprotein metabolism

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Warty, V.S.; Calvo, W.J.; Berceli, S.A.; Pham, S.M.; Durham, S.J.; Tanksale, S.K.; Klein, E.C.; Herman, I.M.; Borovetz, H.S.

1989-01-01

We have investigated the role of hemodynamic factors on low-density lipoprotein transport and metabolism in the intact arterial wall. Freshly excised canine carotid blood vessels were exposed to well-defined pulsatile flow in vitro for continuous periods up to 20 hours. We chose to impose the following hemodynamic conditions on our test carotid arteries: normotension, hypertension (at physiologic flow conditions), and hypertension coupled with elevated flow of canine serum perfusate. In several experiments the effect of endothelial denudation was examined in carotid arteries exposed to normotensive pulsatile flow. A trapped ligand method was used for quantitating low-density lipoprotein uptake and metabolism in the arterial wall. The distribution of both intact and degraded low-density lipoprotein fractions was determined from measurements of radiolabelled low-density lipoprotein activity within thin radial sections of perfused arteries. Our results suggest that both hypertensive hemodynamic simulations exacerbate the uptake of low-density lipoprotein within the arterial wall (by a factor of three to nine). The percentage of low-density lipoprotein that undergoes irreversible degradation falls from 41% under normotensive conditions to below 30% when hypertensive conditions are imposed, indicating that degradative processes are not proportionally elevated with the accelerated influx. A similar pattern is observed for deendothelialized vessels

Three-dimensional anatomical evaluation of bronchial artery with CT angiography

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yu Hong; Li Huimin; Xiao Xiangsheng; Liu Shiyuan; Li Chengzhou; Tao Xiaofeng

2006-01-01

Objective: To evaluate the ability of CT angiography in identifying and demonstrating the origins and courses of bronchial arteries by using the three-dimensional reformation technique. Methods Four hundred and forty-three eases were examined with thin-section enhanced MSCT. Three-dimensional images of bronchial arteries were processed at the workstation. Spatial anatomical characters of the bronchial arteries using volume rendering(VR), muhiplanar reconstruction (MPR), and maxium intensity projection (MIP) were observed. Results: At least one bronchial artery was clearly displayed in VR in 359 eases. The right bronchial arteries mainly appeared to originate from the right intercostal artery (213/436, 48.85% ) and descending aorta (207/436, 47.48%), while the left bronchial arteries mainly from the descending aorta (363/371, 97.84%). The right bronchial arteries of the descending aorta were mainly arised from fight wall (95/207, 45.89%), and then the anterior wall (88/207, 42.51%), while the left bronchial arteries of the descending aorta mainly arised from anterior wall of the aorta (272/363, 74.93%). The common trunk originated from the descending aorta mainly positioned in the anterior wall (57/77, 74.03%). 49.31% (215/436) of the fight bronchial arteries were coursing across the posterior edge of the right main bronchi, 35.55% (155/436) coursing the inferior edge, while 60.11% (223/371) of left bronchial arteries coursing forward across the superior edger of the left main bronchi, the others coursing the inferior or the posterior edge. There were eleven bronchial artery distribution patterns, with the right and left ones predominating (192/359, 53.48%), and then two right and one left (63/359, 17.55%). Conclusion: The bronchial artery anatomy was complicated, and CT angiography could clearly visualize the features. (authors)

Structural behavior and dynamics of an anomalous fluid between attractive and repulsive walls: templating, molding, and superdiffusion.

Science.gov (United States)

Leoni, Fabio; Franzese, Giancarlo

2014-11-07

Confinement can modify the dynamics, the thermodynamics, and the structural properties of liquid water, the prototypical anomalous liquid. By considering a generic model for anomalous liquids, suitable for describing solutions of globular proteins, colloids, or liquid metals, we study by molecular dynamics simulations the effect that an attractive wall with structure and a repulsive wall without structure have on the phases, the crystal nucleation, and the dynamics of the fluid. We find that at low temperatures the large density of the attractive wall induces a high-density, high-energy structure in the first layer ("templating" effect). In turn, the first layer induces a "molding" effect on the second layer determining a structure with reduced energy and density, closer to the average density of the system. This low-density, low-energy structure propagates further through the layers by templating effect and can involve all the existing layers at the lowest temperatures investigated. Therefore, although the high-density, high-energy structure does not self-reproduce further than the first layer, the structured wall can have a long-range influence thanks to a sequence of templating, molding, and templating effects through the layers. We find that the walls also have an influence on the dynamics of the liquid, with a stronger effect near the attractive wall. In particular, we observe that the dynamics is largely heterogeneous (i) among the layers, as a consequence of the sequence of structures caused by the walls presence, and (ii) within the same layer, due to superdiffusive liquid veins within a frozen matrix of particles near the walls at low temperature and high density. Hence, the partial freezing of the first layer does not correspond necessarily to an effective reduction of the channel's section in terms of transport properties, as suggested by other authors.

Corrections of arterial input function for dynamic H215O PET to assess perfusion of pelvic tumours: arterial blood sampling versus image extraction

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Luedemann, L; Sreenivasa, G; Michel, R; Rosner, C; Plotkin, M; Felix, R; Wust, P; Amthauer, H

2006-01-01

Assessment of perfusion with 15 O-labelled water (H 2 15 O) requires measurement of the arterial input function (AIF). The arterial time activity curve (TAC) measured using the peripheral sampling scheme requires corrections for delay and dispersion. In this study, parametrizations with and without arterial spillover correction for fitting of the tissue curve are evaluated. Additionally, a completely noninvasive method for generation of the AIF from a dynamic positron emission tomography (PET) acquisition is applied to assess perfusion of pelvic tumours. This method uses a volume of interest (VOI) to extract the TAC from the femoral artery. The VOI TAC is corrected for spillover using a separate tissue TAC and for recovery by determining the recovery coefficient on a coregistered CT data set. The techniques were applied in five patients with pelvic tumours who underwent a total of 11 examinations. Delay and dispersion correction of the blood TAC without arterial spillover correction yielded in seven examinations solutions inconsistent with physiology. Correction of arterial spillover increased the fitting accuracy and yielded consistent results in all patients. Generation of an AIF from PET image data was investigated as an alternative to arterial blood sampling and was shown to have an intrinsic potential to determine the AIF noninvasively and reproducibly. The AIF extracted from a VOI in a dynamic PET scan was similar in shape to the blood AIF but yielded significantly higher tissue perfusion values (mean of 104.0 ± 52.0%) and lower partition coefficients (-31.6 ± 24.2%). The perfusion values and partition coefficients determined with the VOI technique have to be corrected in order to compare the results with those of studies using a blood AIF

Dynamic modeling and response of soil-wall systems

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Veletsos, A.S.; Younan, A.H.

1993-10-01

The study reported herein is the third in a series of investigations motivated by need to gain improved understanding of the responses to earthquakes of deeply embedded and underground tanks storing radioactive wastes, and to develop rational but simple methods of analysis and design for such systems. Following a brief review of the errors that may result from the use of a popular model for evaluating the dynamic soil forces induced in a base-excited rigid wall retaining an elastic stratum, the sources of the errors are identified and a modification is proposed which defines correctly the action of the system. In the proposed modification, the stratum is modeled by a series of elastically supported, semi-infinite horizontal bars with distributed mass instead of massless springs. The concepts involved are introduced by reference to a system composed of a fixed-based wall and a homogeneous elastic stratum, and are then applied to the analysis of more complex soil-wall systems. Both harmonic and transient excitations are considered, and comprehensive numerical solutions are presented which elucidate the actions involved and the effects and relative importance of the relevant parameters

Excitons in Single-Walled Carbon Nanotubes and Their Dynamics

Science.gov (United States)

Amori, Amanda R.; Hou, Zhentao; Krauss, Todd D.

2018-04-01

Understanding exciton dynamics in single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) is essential to unlocking the many potential applications of these materials. This review summarizes recent progress in understanding exciton photophysics and, in particular, exciton dynamics in SWCNTs. We outline the basic physical and electronic properties of SWCNTs, as well as bright and dark transitions within the framework of a strongly bound one-dimensional excitonic model. We discuss the many facets of ultrafast carrier dynamics in SWCNTs, including both single-exciton states (bright and dark) and multiple-exciton states. Photophysical properties that directly relate to excitons and their dynamics, including exciton diffusion lengths, chemical and structural defects, environmental effects, and photoluminescence photon statistics as observed through photon antibunching measurements, are also discussed. Finally, we identify a few key areas for advancing further research in the field of SWCNT excitons and photonics.

Heterogeneity and weak coupling may explain the synchronization characteristics of cells in the arterial wall

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jacobsen, Jens Christian Brings; Aalkjær, Christian; Matchkov, Vladimir

2008-01-01

development of force known as vasomotion. We present experimental data showing a considerable heterogeneity in cellular calcium dynamics in the vascular wall. In stimulated vessels, some SMCs remain quiescent, whereas others display waves of variable frequency. At the onset of vasomotion, all SMCs...

Dynamics of premixed flames in a narrow channel with a step-wise wall temperature

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kurdyumov, Vadim N. [Department of Energy, CIEMAT, Avda. Complutense 22, 28040 Madrid (Spain); Pizza, Gianmarco [Aerothermochemistry and Combustion Systems Laboratory, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Zurich CH-8092 (Switzerland); Combustion Research, Paul Scherrer Institute, Villigen CH-5232 (Switzerland); Frouzakis, Christos E. [Aerothermochemistry and Combustion Systems Laboratory, Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Zurich CH-8092 (Switzerland); Mantzaras, John [Combustion Research, Paul Scherrer Institute, Villigen CH-5232 (Switzerland)

2009-11-15

The effect of channel height, inflow velocity and wall temperature on the dynamics and stability of unity Lewis number premixed flames in channels with specified wall temperature is investigated with steady and transient numerical simulations using a two-dimensional thermo-diffusive model. The simplified model is capable of capturing many of the transitions and the combustion modes observed experimentally and in direct numerical simulations in micro- and meso-scale channels, and indicates that the thermal flame/wall interaction is the mechanism leading to the observed flame instabilities. Finally, an ad-hoc one-dimensional model based on the flame-sheet approximation is tested in its capacity to reproduce some of the flame dynamics of the two-dimensional thermo-diffusive model. (author)

Femoral Artery Stenosis Following Percutaneous Closure Using a Starclose Closure Device

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Bent, Clare Louise; Kyriakides, Constantinos; Matson, Matthew

2008-01-01

Starclose (Abbott Vascular Devices, Redwood City, CA) is a new arterial closure device that seals a femoral puncture site with an extravascular star-shaped nitinol clip. The clip projects small tines into the arterial wall which fold inward, causing the arterial wall to pucker, producing a purse-string-like seal closing the puncture site. The case history is that of a 76-year-old female patient who underwent day-case percutaneous diagnostic coronary angiography. A Starclose femoral artery closure device was used to achieve hemostasis with subsequent femoral artery stenosis.

Presence of calcium in the vessel walls after end-to-end arterial anastomoses with polydioxanone and polypropylene sutures in growing dogs.

Science.gov (United States)

Gersak, B

1993-10-01

The presence of calcium in the vessel walls after end-to-end arterial anastomoses performed with polydioxanone and polypropylene interrupted sutures was studied in 140 anastomoses in 35 10-week-old German shepherd dogs. Histologic examination with hematoxylin and eosin, van Gieson, and von Kossa staining techniques was performed after the animals were killed 6 months after the operation. Ketamine hydrochloride was used as an anesthetic agent. At the start of the investigation the dogs weighed 14.5 +/- 2.6 kg (mean +/- standard deviation, n = 35), and after 6 months they weighed 45.3 +/- 3.1 kg (mean +/- standard deviation, n = 35). The diameter of the sutured arteries in the first operation was 2.6 +/- 0.5 mm (mean +/- standard deviation, n = 140). With each dog, both brachial and both femoral arteries were used--one artery for each different type of suture. In different dogs, different arteries were used for the same type of suture. The prevalence of calcifications after 6 months was determined from the numeric density of calcifications with standard stereologic techniques. The sutured and sutureless parts taken from longitudinal sections from each artery were studied, and t test values were calculated as follows: In paired samples, statistically significant differences in numerical density of calcifications were seen between sutured and sutureless arterial parts for both materials (sutureless part versus part with polydioxanone sutures, p 0.05, n = 70) and sutureless parts (p > 0.05, n = 70).

Resolvent-based modeling of passive scalar dynamics in wall-bounded turbulence

Science.gov (United States)

Dawson, Scott; Saxton-Fox, Theresa; McKeon, Beverley

2017-11-01

The resolvent formulation of the Navier-Stokes equations expresses the system state as the output of a linear (resolvent) operator acting upon a nonlinear forcing. Previous studies have demonstrated that a low-rank approximation of this linear operator predicts many known features of incompressible wall-bounded turbulence. In this work, this resolvent model for wall-bounded turbulence is extended to include a passive scalar field. This formulation allows for a number of additional simplifications that reduce model complexity. Firstly, it is shown that the effect of changing scalar diffusivity can be approximated through a transformation of spatial wavenumbers and temporal frequencies. Secondly, passive scalar dynamics may be studied through the low-rank approximation of a passive scalar resolvent operator, which is decoupled from velocity response modes. Thirdly, this passive scalar resolvent operator is amenable to approximation by semi-analytic methods. We investigate the extent to which this resulting hierarchy of models can describe and predict passive scalar dynamics and statistics in wall-bounded turbulence. The support of AFOSR under Grant Numbers FA9550-16-1-0232 and FA9550-16-1-0361 is gratefully acknowledged.

Absorbed dose to the urinary bladder wall for different radiopharmaceuticals using dynamic S-values

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Andersson, M.; Minarik, D.; Mattsson, S.; Leide-Svegborn; Johansson, L.

2015-01-01

Full text of publication follows. Aim and background: the urinary bladder wall is a radiosensitive organ that can receive a high absorbed dose from radiopharmaceuticals used in diagnostic nuclear medicine. Current dynamic models estimate the photon and electron absorbed dose at the inner surface of the bladder wall. The aim of this work has been to create a more realistic estimation of the mean absorbed dose to the urinary bladder wall from different radiopharmaceuticals. This calculation also uses dynamic specific absorption fractions (SAF) that changes with bladder volume and are gender specific. Materials and Methods: the volume of the urinary bladder content was calculated using a spherical approximation with a urinary inflow of 1.0 ml/min and 0.5 ml/min during day and night time, respectively. The activity in the bladder content was described using a bi-exponential extraction from the body. The absorbed dose to the bladder wall was estimated using linear interpolation of SAF values from different bladder volumes, ranging from 10 ml to 800 ml. Administration of the activity was assumed to start at 09:00 with an initial voiding after 40 minutes and a voiding interval of 3.5 hours during the day. A six hour night gap, starting at midnight, with a voiding right before and after the night period, was used. Calculations were made, with the same assumptions, for an earlier dynamic bladder model and with a static SAF value from the ICRP/ICRU adult reference computational phantoms for a bladder containing 200 ml. Values for the absorbed dose per unit administered activity for 19 commonly used radiopharmaceuticals were calculated, e.g. 18 F-FDG, 99m Tc-pertechnetate, 99m Tc-MAG3 and 123 I-NaI. Results and conclusion: the results of the estimates of the absorbed doses to the inner bladder wall were a factor of ten higher than the estimates mean absorbed doses. The mean absorbed doses to the bladder wall were slightly higher for females than males, due to a smaller female

Comparison of Kalman-filter-based approaches for block matching in arterial wall motion analysis from B-mode ultrasound

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gastounioti, A; Stoitsis, J; Nikita, K S; Golemati, S

2011-01-01

Block matching (BM) has been previously used to estimate motion of the carotid artery from B-mode ultrasound image sequences. In this paper, Kalman filtering (KF) was incorporated in this conventional method in two distinct scenarios: (a) as an adaptive strategy, by renewing the reference block and (b) by renewing the displacements estimated by BM or adaptive BM. All methods resulting from combinations of BM and KF with the two scenarios were evaluated on synthetic image sequences by computing the warping index, defined as the mean squared error between the real and estimated displacements. Adaptive BM, followed by an update through the second scenario at the end of tracking, ABM K F-K2, minimized the warping index and yielded average displacement error reductions of 24% with respect to BM. The same method decreased estimation bias and jitter over varying center frequencies by 30% and 64%, respectively, with respect to BM. These results demonstrated the increased accuracy and robustness of ABM K F-K2 in motion tracking of the arterial wall from B-mode ultrasound images, which is crucial in the study of mechanical properties of normal and diseased arterial segments

Magnetic domain wall gratings for magnetization reversal tuning and confined dynamic mode localization.

Science.gov (United States)

Trützschler, Julia; Sentosun, Kadir; Mozooni, Babak; Mattheis, Roland; McCord, Jeffrey

2016-08-04

High density magnetic domain wall gratings are imprinted in ferromagnetic-antiferromagnetic thin films by local ion irradiation by which alternating head-to-tail-to-head-to-tail and head-to-head-to-tail-to-tail spatially overlapping domain wall networks are formed. Unique magnetic domain processes result from the interaction of anchored domain walls. Non-linear magnetization response is introduced by the laterally distributed magnetic anisotropy phases. The locally varying magnetic charge distribution gives rise to localized and guided magnetization spin-wave modes directly constrained by the narrow domain wall cores. The exchange coupled multiphase material structure leads to unprecedented static and locally modified dynamic magnetic material properties.

Dynamic Fungal Cell Wall Architecture in Stress Adaptation and Immune Evasion.

Science.gov (United States)

Hopke, Alex; Brown, Alistair J P; Hall, Rebecca A; Wheeler, Robert T

2018-04-01

Deadly infections from opportunistic fungi have risen in frequency, largely because of the at-risk immunocompromised population created by advances in modern medicine and the HIV/AIDS pandemic. This review focuses on dynamics of the fungal polysaccharide cell wall, which plays an outsized role in fungal pathogenesis and therapy because it acts as both an environmental barrier and as the major interface with the host immune system. Human fungal pathogens use architectural strategies to mask epitopes from the host and prevent immune surveillance, and recent work elucidates how biotic and abiotic stresses present during infection can either block or enhance masking. The signaling components implicated in regulating fungal immune recognition can teach us how cell wall dynamics are controlled, and represent potential targets for interventions designed to boost or dampen immunity. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

The contribution of vascular smooth muscle, elastin and collagen on the passive mechanics of porcine carotid arteries

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kochová, P; Cimrman, R; Kuncová, J; Švíglerová, J; Miklíková, M; Liška, V; Tonar, Z

2012-01-01

The main components responsible for the mechanical behavior of the arterial wall are collagen, elastin, and smooth muscle cells (SMCs) in the medial layer. We determined the structural and mechanical changes in porcine carotid arteries after administration of Triton® X-100, elastase, and collagenase using the inflation–deflation test. The arteries were intraluminarly pressurized from 0 to 200 mmHg, and the outer diameter of the artery was measured. The pressure–strain elastic modulus was determined based on the pressure/diameter ratio. The intima–media thickness, wall thickness, thickness of the tunica adventitia layer, and the area fractions of SMCs, elastin, and collagen within the arterial wall (A A (SMC/elastin/collagen, wall)) were measured using stereological methods. The relative changes in the relevant components of the treated samples were as follows: the decrease in A A (SMC, wall) after administration of Triton® X-100 was 11% ± 7%, the decrease in A A (elastin, wall) after administration of elastase was 40% ± 22%, and the decrease in A A (collagen, wall) after the application of collagenase was 51% ± 22%. The Triton® X-100 treatment led to a decrease in the SMC content that was associated with enlargement of the arterial wall (outer diameter) for pressures up to 120 mmHg, and with mechanical stiffening of the arterial wall at higher pressures. Elastase led to a decrease in the elastin content that was associated with enlargement of the arterial wall, but not with stiffening or softening. Collagenase led to a decrease in collagen content that was associated with a change in the stiffness of the arterial wall, although the exact contribution of mechanical loading and the duration of treatment (enlargement) could not be quantified. (paper)

A multi-component parallel-plate flow chamber system for studying the effect of exercise-induced wall shear stress on endothelial cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Yan-Xia; Xiang, Cheng; Liu, Bo; Zhu, Yong; Luan, Yong; Liu, Shu-Tian; Qin, Kai-Rong

2016-12-28

In vivo studies have demonstrated that reasonable exercise training can improve endothelial function. To confirm the key role of wall shear stress induced by exercise on endothelial cells, and to understand how wall shear stress affects the structure and the function of endothelial cells, it is crucial to design and fabricate an in vitro multi-component parallel-plate flow chamber system which can closely replicate exercise-induced wall shear stress waveforms in artery. The in vivo wall shear stress waveforms from the common carotid artery of a healthy volunteer in resting and immediately after 30 min acute aerobic cycling exercise were first calculated by measuring the inner diameter and the center-line blood flow velocity with a color Doppler ultrasound. According to the above in vivo wall shear stress waveforms, we designed and fabricated a parallel-plate flow chamber system with appropriate components based on a lumped parameter hemodynamics model. To validate the feasibility of this system, human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) line were cultured within the parallel-plate flow chamber under abovementioned two types of wall shear stress waveforms and the intracellular actin microfilaments and nitric oxide (NO) production level were evaluated using fluorescence microscope. Our results show that the trends of resting and exercise-induced wall shear stress waveforms, especially the maximal, minimal and mean wall shear stress as well as oscillatory shear index, generated by the parallel-plate flow chamber system are similar to those acquired from the common carotid artery. In addition, the cellular experiments demonstrate that the actin microfilaments and the production of NO within cells exposed to the two different wall shear stress waveforms exhibit different dynamic behaviors; there are larger numbers of actin microfilaments and higher level NO in cells exposed in exercise-induced wall shear stress condition than resting wall shear stress condition

A low dimensional dynamical system for the wall layer

Science.gov (United States)

Aubry, N.; Keefe, L. R.

1987-01-01

Low dimensional dynamical systems which model a fully developed turbulent wall layer were derived.The model is based on the optimally fast convergent proper orthogonal decomposition, or Karhunen-Loeve expansion. This decomposition provides a set of eigenfunctions which are derived from the autocorrelation tensor at zero time lag. Via Galerkin projection, low dimensional sets of ordinary differential equations in time, for the coefficients of the expansion, were derived from the Navier-Stokes equations. The energy loss to the unresolved modes was modeled by an eddy viscosity representation, analogous to Heisenberg's spectral model. A set of eigenfunctions and eigenvalues were obtained from direct numerical simulation of a plane channel at a Reynolds number of 6600, based on the mean centerline velocity and the channel width flow and compared with previous work done by Herzog. Using the new eigenvalues and eigenfunctions, a new ten dimensional set of ordinary differential equations were derived using five non-zero cross-stream Fourier modes with a periodic length of 377 wall units. The dynamical system was integrated for a range of the eddy viscosity prameter alpha. This work is encouraging.

Mechanosensation Dynamically Coordinates Polar Growth and Cell Wall Assembly to Promote Cell Survival.

Science.gov (United States)

Davì, Valeria; Tanimoto, Hirokazu; Ershov, Dmitry; Haupt, Armin; De Belly, Henry; Le Borgne, Rémi; Couturier, Etienne; Boudaoud, Arezki; Minc, Nicolas

2018-04-23

How growing cells cope with size expansion while ensuring mechanical integrity is not known. In walled cells, such as those of microbes and plants, growth and viability are both supported by a thin and rigid encasing cell wall (CW). We deciphered the dynamic mechanisms controlling wall surface assembly during cell growth, using a sub-resolution microscopy approach to monitor CW thickness in live rod-shaped fission yeast cells. We found that polar cell growth yielded wall thinning and that thickness negatively influenced growth. Thickness at growing tips exhibited a fluctuating behavior with thickening phases followed by thinning phases, indicative of a delayed feedback promoting thickness homeostasis. This feedback was mediated by mechanosensing through the CW integrity pathway, which probes strain in the wall to adjust synthase localization and activity to surface growth. Mutants defective in thickness homeostasis lysed by rupturing the wall, demonstrating its pivotal role for walled cell survival. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Endotoxemia reduces cerebral perfusion but enhances dynamic cerebrovascular autoregulation at reduced arterial carbon dioxide tension*

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Brassard, Patrice; Kim, Yu-Sok; van Lieshout, Johannes

2012-01-01

OBJECTIVE:: The administration of endotoxin to healthy humans reduces cerebral blood flow but its influence on dynamic cerebral autoregulation remains unknown. We considered that a reduction in arterial carbon dioxide tension would attenuate cerebral perfusion and improve dynamic cerebral autoreg...

Field- and current-driven domain wall dynamics: An experimental picture

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Beach, G.S.D.; Knutson, C.; Tsoi, M.; Erskine, J.L.

2007-01-01

Field- and current-driven domain wall velocities are measured and discussed in terms of existing spin-torque models. A reversal in the roles of adiabatic and non-adiabatic spin-torque is shown to arise in those models below and above Walker breakdown. The measured dependence of velocity on current is the same in both regimes, indicating both spin-torque components have similar magnitude. However, the models on which these conclusions are based have serious quantitative shortcomings in describing the observed field-driven wall dynamics, for which they were originally developed. Hence, the applicability of simple one-dimensional models to most experimental conditions may be limited

Dynamic changes in transcriptome and cell wall composition underlying brassinosteroid-mediated lignification of switchgrass suspension cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Rao, Xiaolan; Shen, Hui; Pattathil, Sivakumar; Hahn, Michael G; Gelineo-Albersheim, Ivana; Mohnen, Debra; Pu, Yunqiao; Ragauskas, Arthur J; Chen, Xin; Chen, Fang; Dixon, Richard A

2017-01-01

Plant cell walls contribute the majority of plant biomass that can be used to produce transportation fuels. However, the complexity and variability in composition and structure of cell walls, particularly the presence of lignin, negatively impacts their deconstruction for bioenergy. Metabolic and genetic changes associated with secondary wall development in the biofuel crop switchgrass ( Panicum virgatum ) have yet to be reported. Our previous studies have established a cell suspension system for switchgrass, in which cell wall lignification can be induced by application of brassinolide (BL). We have now collected cell wall composition and microarray-based transcriptome profiles for BL-induced and non-induced suspension cultures to provide an overview of the dynamic changes in transcriptional reprogramming during BL-induced cell wall modification. From this analysis, we have identified changes in candidate genes involved in cell wall precursor synthesis, cellulose, hemicellulose, and pectin formation and ester-linkage generation. We have also identified a large number of transcription factors with expression correlated with lignin biosynthesis genes, among which are candidates for control of syringyl (S) lignin accumulation. Together, this work provides an overview of the dynamic compositional changes during brassinosteroid-induced cell wall remodeling, and identifies candidate genes for future plant genetic engineering to overcome cell wall recalcitrance.

Dynamic MR imaging of hepatoma treated by transcatheter arterial embolization therapy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yamashita, Y.; Yoshimatsu, S.; Sumi, M.; Harada, M.; Takahashi, M.

1993-01-01

The effect of transcatheter arterial chemo-embolization theory (TACE) for hepatoma was evaluated with dynamic MR imaging with Gd-DTPA in 37 patients (44 tumors). TACE was performed using Lipiodol/cis-platinum and gelatin sponge (or microspheres) as an embolic material. All patients were examined with dynamic CT and MR imaging before and after treatment. On conventional spin echo images, changes of signal intensity after treatment varied regardless of presence of Lipiodol. Dynamic MR imaging revealed changes of tumor vascularity before and after treatment. On histologic correlation, areas of persistent tumor enhancement on dynamic MR imaging corresponded to areas of viable tumor cells while areas of nonenhancement corresponded to areas of necrosis. Dynamic MR imaging was superior in contrast resolution and was not influenced by the presence of Lipiodol compared with dynamic CT, and therefore residual viable tumors were better defined by dynamic MR imaging. (orig.)

Brain arterial aging and its relationship to Alzheimer dementia.

Science.gov (United States)

Gutierrez, Jose; Honig, Lawrence; Elkind, Mitchell S V; Mohr, Jay P; Goldman, James; Dwork, Andrew J; Morgello, Susan; Marshall, Randolph S

2016-04-19

To test the hypothesis that brain arterial aging is associated with the pathologic diagnosis of Alzheimer disease (AD). Brain large arteries were assessed for diameter, gaps in the internal elastic lamina (IEL), luminal stenosis, atherosclerosis, and lumen-to-wall ratio. Elastin, collagen, and amyloid were assessed with Van Gieson, trichrome, and Congo red staining intensities, and quantified automatically. Brain infarcts and AD (defined pathologically) were assessed at autopsy. We created a brain arterial aging (BAA) score with arterial characteristics associated with aging after adjusting for demographic and clinical variables using cross-sectional generalized linear models. We studied 194 autopsied brains, 25 (13%) of which had autopsy evidence of AD. Brain arterial aging consisted of higher interadventitial and lumen diameters, thickening of the wall, increased prevalence of IEL gaps, concentric intima thickening, elastin loss, increased amyloid deposition, and a higher IEL proportion without changes in lumen-to-wall ratio. In multivariable analysis, a high IEL proportion (B = 1.96, p = 0.030), thick media (B = 3.50, p = 0.001), elastin loss (B = 6.16, p < 0.001), IEL gaps (B = 3.14, p = 0.023), and concentric intima thickening (B = 7.19, p < 0.001) were used to create the BAA score. Adjusting for demographics, vascular risk factors, atherosclerosis, and brain infarcts, the BAA score was associated with AD (B = 0.022, p = 0.002). Aging of brain large arteries is characterized by arterial dilation with a commensurate wall thickening, elastin loss, and IEL gaps. Greater intensity of arterial aging was associated with AD independently of atherosclerosis and brain infarcts. Understanding the drivers of arterial aging may advance the knowledge of the pathophysiology of AD. © 2016 American Academy of Neurology.

Bound eigenstate dynamics under a sudden shift of the well's wall

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Granot, Er'el; Marchewka, Avi

2010-01-01

We investigate the dynamics of the eigenstate of an infinite well under an abrupt shift of the well's wall. It is shown that when the shift is small compared to the initial well's dimensions, the short-time behavior changes from the well-known t 3/2 behavior to t 1/2 . It is also shown that the complete dynamical picture converges to a universal function, which has fractal structure with dimensionality D=1.25.

Lattice Boltzmann simulations for wall-flow dynamics in porous ceramic diesel particulate filters

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Da Young; Lee, Gi Wook; Yoon, Kyu; Chun, Byoungjin; Jung, Hyun Wook

2018-01-01

Flows through porous filter walls of wall-flow diesel particulate filter are investigated using the lattice Boltzmann method (LBM). The microscopic model of the realistic filter wall is represented by randomly overlapped arrays of solid spheres. The LB simulation results are first validated by comparison to those from previous hydrodynamic theories and constitutive models for flows in porous media with simple regular and random solid-wall configurations. We demonstrate that the newly designed randomly overlapped array structures of porous walls allow reliable and accurate simulations for the porous wall-flow dynamics in a wide range of solid volume fractions from 0.01 to about 0.8, which is beyond the maximum random packing limit of 0.625. The permeable performance of porous media is scrutinized by changing the solid volume fraction and particle Reynolds number using Darcy's law and Forchheimer's extension in the laminar flow region.

Application of dynamic slip wall modeling to a turbine nozzle guide vane

Science.gov (United States)

Bose, Sanjeeb; Talnikar, Chaitanya; Blonigan, Patrick; Wang, Qiqi

2015-11-01

Resolution of near-wall turbulent structures is computational prohibitive necessitating the need for wall-modeled large-eddy simulation approaches. Standard wall models are often based on assumptions of equilibrium boundary layers, which do not necessarily account for the dissimilarity of the momentum and thermal boundary layers. We investigate the use of the dynamic slip wall boundary condition (Bose and Moin, 2014) for the prediction of surface heat transfer on a turbine nozzle guide vane (Arts and de Rouvroit, 1992). The heat transfer coefficient is well predicted by the slip wall model, including capturing the transition to turbulence. The sensitivity of the heat transfer coefficient to the incident turbulence intensity will additionally be discussed. Lastly, the behavior of the thermal and momentum slip lengths will be contrasted between regions where the strong Reynolds analogy is invalid (near transition on the suction side) and an isothermal, zero pressure gradient flat plate boundary layer (Wu and Moin, 2010).

Breast arterial calcification and risk of carotid atherosclerosis: Focusing on the preferentially affected layer of the vessel wall

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sedighi, Nahid; Radmard, Amir Reza; Radmehr, Ali; Hashemi, Pari; Hajizadeh, Abdolmahmoud; Taheri, Amir Pejman Hashemi

2011-01-01

Objective: To assess the relationship between breast arterial calcification (BAC) detected on screening mammography and atherosclerosis of carotid arteries considering the most likely involved layer of the arterial wall. Materials and methods: A total of 537 consecutive women who underwent screening mammography were enrolled in this study. Seventy-nine subjects having BAC, aged 46-75 years, and 125 age-matched controls from those without BAC were selected for ultrasound examination of carotid arteries assessing intima-media thickness (IMT) and plaque presence. Participants were divided into three groups of risk including, low-risk: IMT 0.8 mm and/or plaque. Risk factors for atherosclerosis were obtained from medical records for independent effects. Results: BAC was present in 14.7% of mammograms. According to multivariable logistic regression analyses, significant association was identified between the carotid atherosclerosis risk and presence of BAC. Compared to women with IMT 0.8 mm had OR (95% CI) of 4.88 (1.47-16.16) and 23.36 (4.54-120.14), respectively. The OR (95% CI) for carotid plaque was 3.13 (1.3-7.57). There was no interaction between IMT category and plaque. Significant associations were also detected with postmenopausal duration (P = 0.02) and hypertension (P = 0.004). Conclusion: The risk of carotid atherosclerosis increases with the presence of BAC. Women with BAC are more likely to have thicker IMT than plaque, which could be attributed to the preferentially similar affected layer of media causing thick IMT rather than plaque.

Tissue Doppler imaging of carotid plaque wall motion: a pilot study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Naylor A Ross

2003-12-01

Full Text Available Abstract Background Studies suggest the physical and mechanical properties of vessel walls and plaque may be of clinical value in the diagnosis and treatment of cardiovascular atherosclerotic disease. The purpose of this pilot study was to investigate the potential clinical application of ultrasound Tissue Doppler Imaging (TDI of Arterial Wall Motion (AWM and to quantify simple wall motion indices in normal and diseased carotid arteries. Methods 224 normal and diseased carotid arteries (0–100% stenoses were imaged in 126 patients (age 25–88 years, mean 68 ± 11. Longitudinal sections of the carotid bifurcation were imaged using a Philips HDI5000 scanner and L12-5 probe under optimized TDI settings. Temporal and spatial AWMs were analyzed to evaluate the vessel wall displacements and spatial gradients at peak systole averaged over 5 cardiac cycles. Results AWM data were successfully extracted in 91% of cases. Within the carotid bifurcation/plaque region, the maximum wall dilation at peak systole ranged from -100 to 750 microns, mean 335 ± 138 microns. Maximum wall dilation spatial gradients ranged 0–0.49, mean 0.14 ± 0.08. The AWM parameters showed a wide variation and had poor correlation with stenoses severity. Case studies illustrated a variety of pertinent qualitative and quantitative wall motion features related to the biophysics of arterial disease. Conclusion Our clinical experience, using a challenging but realistic imaging protocol, suggests the use of simple quantitative AWM measures may have limitations due to high variability. Despite this, pertinent features of AWM in normal and diseased arteries demonstrate the potential clinical benefit of the biomechanical information provided by TDI.

Value of gated SPECT in the analysis of regional wall motion of the interventricular septum after coronary artery bypass grafting

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Giubbini, Raffaele; Rossini, Pierluigi; Bertagna, Francesco; Bosio, Giovanni; Paghera, Barbara; Pizzocaro, Claudio; Canclini, Silvana; Terzi, Arturo; Germano, Guido

2004-01-01

The aim of this study was the evaluation of septal wall motion, perfusion and wall thickening after CABG in two groups of consecutive patients, one with grafted left anterior coronary artery and no history of myocardial infarction, and the other with previous anteroseptal myocardial infarction and impaired septal motion before surgery. The issue addressed was the ability of gated SPECT to differentiate between true paradoxical septal motion, characterised by paradoxical wall motion, depressed ejection fraction (EF), poor viability and compromised wall thickening, and pseudo-paradoxical motion, characterised by abnormal wall motion and regional EF but preserved perfusion and wall thickening. One hundred and thirty-two patients with previous anterior myocardial infarction, 82 patients with left anterior descending coronary disease and no history of myocardial infarction and 27 normal subjects underwent rest gated SPECT after 99m Tc-sestamibi injection, according to the standard QGS protocol. Quantitative regional EF, regional perfusion, regional wall motion and regional wall thickening were determined using a 20-segment model. Despite the presence of similar regional wall motion impairment in patients with and patients without septal infarction, in terms of regional EF (2.5%±3% vs 1.9%±4.9% p=NS) and inward septal motion (3±4.9 mm vs 2.3±6.1 mm p=NS), significant differences were observed in both perfusion (74.7%±6.2% vs 63.3%±13%, p>0.0001) and regional wall thickening (17.2%±7.4% vs 12.6%±7.2%, p>0.0001). Gated SPECT with perfusion tracers can reliably differentiate pseudo-paradoxical from true paradoxical septal motion in patients with previous CABG, and it may be the method of choice for evaluating left ventricular performance in this patient population. (orig.)

Value of gated SPECT in the analysis of regional wall motion of the interventricular septum after coronary artery bypass grafting.

Science.gov (United States)

Giubbini, Raffaele; Rossini, Pierluigi; Bertagna, Francesco; Bosio, Giovanni; Paghera, Barbara; Pizzocaro, Claudio; Canclini, Silvana; Terzi, Arturo; Germano, Guido

2004-10-01

The aim of this study was the evaluation of septal wall motion, perfusion and wall thickening after CABG in two groups of consecutive patients, one with grafted left anterior coronary artery and no history of myocardial infarction, and the other with previous anteroseptal myocardial infarction and impaired septal motion before surgery. The issue addressed was the ability of gated SPECT to differentiate between true paradoxical septal motion, characterised by paradoxical wall motion, depressed ejection fraction (EF), poor viability and compromised wall thickening, and pseudo-paradoxical motion, characterised by abnormal wall motion and regional EF but preserved perfusion and wall thickening. One hundred and thirty-two patients with previous anterior myocardial infarction, 82 patients with left anterior descending coronary disease and no history of myocardial infarction and 27 normal subjects underwent rest gated SPECT after 99mTc-sestamibi injection, according to the standard QGS protocol. Quantitative regional EF, regional perfusion, regional wall motion and regional wall thickening were determined using a 20-segment model. Despite the presence of similar regional wall motion impairment in patients with and patients without septal infarction, in terms of regional EF (2.5%+/-3% vs 1.9%+/-4.9% p=NS) and inward septal motion (3+/-4.9 mm vs 2.3+/-6.1 mm p=NS), significant differences were observed in both perfusion (74.7%+/-6.2% vs 63.3%+/-13%, p>0.0001) and regional wall thickening (17.2%+/-7.4% vs 12.6%+/-7.2%, p>0.0001). Gated SPECT with perfusion tracers can reliably differentiate pseudo-paradoxical from true paradoxical septal motion in patients with previous CABG, and it may be the method of choice for evaluating left ventricular performance in this patient population.

Value of gated SPECT in the analysis of regional wall motion of the interventricular septum after coronary artery bypass grafting

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Giubbini, Raffaele; Rossini, Pierluigi; Bertagna, Francesco; Bosio, Giovanni; Paghera, Barbara; Pizzocaro, Claudio; Canclini, Silvana; Terzi, Arturo [Spedali Civili di Brescia, Department of Nuclear Medicine, Brescia (Italy); Germano, Guido [Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, Artificial Intelligence Program, Department of Medicine, Los Angeles, CA (United States)

2004-10-01

The aim of this study was the evaluation of septal wall motion, perfusion and wall thickening after CABG in two groups of consecutive patients, one with grafted left anterior coronary artery and no history of myocardial infarction, and the other with previous anteroseptal myocardial infarction and impaired septal motion before surgery. The issue addressed was the ability of gated SPECT to differentiate between true paradoxical septal motion, characterised by paradoxical wall motion, depressed ejection fraction (EF), poor viability and compromised wall thickening, and pseudo-paradoxical motion, characterised by abnormal wall motion and regional EF but preserved perfusion and wall thickening. One hundred and thirty-two patients with previous anterior myocardial infarction, 82 patients with left anterior descending coronary disease and no history of myocardial infarction and 27 normal subjects underwent rest gated SPECT after {sup 99m}Tc-sestamibi injection, according to the standard QGS protocol. Quantitative regional EF, regional perfusion, regional wall motion and regional wall thickening were determined using a 20-segment model. Despite the presence of similar regional wall motion impairment in patients with and patients without septal infarction, in terms of regional EF (2.5%{+-}3% vs 1.9%{+-}4.9% p=NS) and inward septal motion (3{+-}4.9 mm vs 2.3{+-}6.1 mm p=NS), significant differences were observed in both perfusion (74.7%{+-}6.2% vs 63.3%{+-}13%, p>0.0001) and regional wall thickening (17.2%{+-}7.4% vs 12.6%{+-}7.2%, p>0.0001). Gated SPECT with perfusion tracers can reliably differentiate pseudo-paradoxical from true paradoxical septal motion in patients with previous CABG, and it may be the method of choice for evaluating left ventricular performance in this patient population. (orig.)

Intravascular ultrasound for iliac artery imaging. Clinical review

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Vogt, K G; Schroeder, T V

2001-01-01

IVUS is able to produce trans-sectional images of the iliac arteries at a high resolution. The three layered appearance of the arterial wall can be visualized. In the atherosclerotic diseased artery calcified plaques can be discerned from non-calcified plaques, and the distribution of the plaque...

Bound eigenstate dynamics under a sudden shift of the well's wall

Science.gov (United States)

Granot, Er'El; Marchewka, Avi

2010-03-01

We investigate the dynamics of the eigenstate of an infinite well under an abrupt shift of the well’s wall. It is shown that when the shift is small compared to the initial well’s dimensions, the short-time behavior changes from the well-known t3/2 behavior to t1/2. It is also shown that the complete dynamical picture converges to a universal function, which has fractal structure with dimensionality D=1.25.

The Kaon B-parameter from Two-Flavour Dynamical Domain Wall Fermions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dawson, C.

2005-01-01

We report on the calculation of the kaon B-parameter using two dynamical flavours of domain wall fermions. Our analysis is based on three ensembles of configurations, each consisting of about 5,000 HMC trajectories, with a lattice spacing of approximately 1.7 GeV for 16 3 x32 lattices; dynamical quark masses range from approximately the strange quark mass to half of that. Both degenerate and non-degenerate quark masses are used for the kaons

Pharmacological modulation of arterial stiffness.

LENUS (Irish Health Repository)

Boutouyrie, Pierre

2011-09-10

Arterial stiffness has emerged as an important marker of cardiovascular risk in various populations and reflects the cumulative effect of cardiovascular risk factors on large arteries, which in turn is modulated by genetic background. Arterial stiffness is determined by the composition of the arterial wall and the arrangement of these components, and can be studied in humans non-invasively. Age and distending pressure are two major factors influencing large artery stiffness. Change in arterial stiffness with drugs is an important endpoint in clinical trials, although evidence for arterial stiffness as a therapeutic target still needs to be confirmed. Drugs that independently affect arterial stiffness include antihypertensive drugs, mostly blockers of the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system, hormone replacement therapy and some antidiabetic drugs such as glitazones. While the quest continues for \\'de-stiffening drugs\\

Imaging the Dynamics of Cell Wall Polymer Deposition in the Unicellular Model Plant, Penium margaritaceum.

Science.gov (United States)

Domozych, David; Lietz, Anna; Patten, Molly; Singer, Emily; Tinaz, Berke; Raimundo, Sandra C

2017-01-01

The unicellular green alga, Penium margaritaceum, represents a novel and valuable model organism for elucidating cell wall dynamics in plants. This organism's cell wall contains several polymers that are highly similar to those found in the primary cell walls of land plants. Penium is easily grown in laboratory culture and is effectively manipulated in various experimental protocols including microplate assays and correlative microscopy. Most importantly, Penium can be live labeled with cell wall-specific antibodies or other probes and returned to culture where specific cell wall developmental events can be monitored. Additionally, live cells can be rapidly cryo-fixed and cell wall surface microarchitecture can be observed with variable pressure scanning electron microscopy. Here, we describe the methodology for maintaining Penium for experimental cell wall enzyme studies.

Evolución de los modelos constitutivos de respuesta pasiva para paredes arteriales//Evolution of constitutive models for passive response of the arterial walls

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Guillermo Fernández‐Collazo

2014-08-01

Full Text Available La respuesta mecánica de las paredes arteriales se modifica como consecuencia del envejecimiento y el desarrollo de enfermedades. Estos cambios se ven reflejados en modificaciones en su estructura, composición, resistencia y forma. La predicción de su comportamiento en dependencia de su estado fisiológico usando modelos biomecánicos se muestra como una potente herramienta en el tratamiento y diagnóstico de aneurismas, ateroesclerosis, hipertensión arterial entre otras. Realizando un profundo análisis de la literatura consultada se presenta un estudio bibliográfico de los modelos constitutivos de paredes arteriales en su respuesta pasiva, clasificándolos y destacando sus principales ventajas, desventajas y la evolución de estos desde los puramente fenomenológicos hasta los más complejos.Palabras claves: modelos, arterias, respuesta pasiva, biomecánica._______________________________________________________________________________AbstractThe mechanical response of arterial walls is modified as a result of aging and disease development. These changes are reflected in changes in its composition, strength, shape and structure. The prediction of their behavior, depending on their physiological state used biomechanical models is shown as a powerful tool in the treatment and diagnosis of aneurysms, atherosclerosis, hypertensionand others. It´s presented in its passive response, a profound analysis of the literature and the bibliographic review of the constitutive models of arterial walls, classifying and highlighting their main advantages, disadvantages and the  volution from purely phenomenological to the most complex response.Key words: models, artery, passive response, biomechanics.

Relations between a novel, reliable, and rapid index of arterial compliance (PP-HDI) and well-established inidices of arterial blood pressure (ABP) in a sample of hypertensive elderly subjects.

Science.gov (United States)

Bergamini, L; Finelli, M E; Bendini, C; Ferrari, E; Veschi, M; Neviani, F; Manni, B; Pelosi, A; Rioli, G; Neri, M

2009-01-01

Hypertension is a risk factor for a long-lasting arterial wall-remodelling leading to stiffness. The rapid method measuring the pulse pressure (PP) by means of the tool of Hypertension Diagnostic Instruments (HDI) called PP-HDI, overcomes some of the problems arising with more-time consuming methods, like ambulatory blood pressure monitoring (ABPM), and give information about the elasticity of the arterial walls. We studied the relationship between the PP-HDI, the large artery compliance (LA-C) and small artery compliance (SA-C) and few well-established indices of arterial blood pressure (ABP) in a sample of 75 hypertensive subjects, aged 65 years and over. Significant correlations between LA-C and heart rate (HR), PP-ABPM and PP-HDI were found. SA-C relates with HR and systolic blood pressure (SBP) measured in lying and standing positions. Applying a stepwise regression analysis, we found that LA-C variance stems from PP-HDI and HR, while SA-C variance stems from SBP in lying position. Receiver operator characteristic (ROC) curves for thresholds of PP showed that PP-HDI reached levels of sensitivity/specificity similar to PP-ABPM. In conclusion, surveillance of ABP through hemo-dynamic indices, in particular of SBP, is essential, nevertheless the advantage of this control is not known in an elderly population where the organ damage is already evident. PP needs necessarily an instrumental measurement. The PP-HDI result is similar in reliability with respect to PPABPM, but is more rapid and well applicable in an elderly population.

Coupled Dzyaloshinskii walls and their current-induced dynamics by the spin Hall effect

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Martínez, Eduardo, E-mail: edumartinez@usal.es [Dpto. de Fisica Aplicada, Universidad de Salamanca, Plaza de los Caídos s/n, E-37008 Salamanca (Spain); Alejos, Óscar [Dpto. de Electricidad y Electrónica, Universidad de Valladolid, Paseo de Belén, 7, E-47011 Valladolid (Spain)

2014-07-14

The nucleation of domain walls in ultrathin ferromagnetic/heavy-metal bilayers is studied by means of micromagnetic simulations. In the presence of interfacial Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction, the nucleated walls naturally adopt a homochiral configuration with internal magnetization pointing antiparallely. The interaction between these walls was analyzed and described in terms of a classical dipolar force between the magnetic moments of the walls, which couples their dynamics. Additionally, the current-induced motion of two homochiral walls in the presence of longitudinal fields was also studied by means of a simple one-dimensional model and micromagnetic modeling, considering both one free-defect strip and another one with random edge roughness. It is evidenced that in the presence of pinning due to edge roughness, the in-plane longitudinal field introduces an asymmetry in the current-induced depinning, in agreement with recent experimental results.

Coupled Dzyaloshinskii walls and their current-induced dynamics by the spin Hall effect

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Martínez, Eduardo; Alejos, Óscar

2014-01-01

The nucleation of domain walls in ultrathin ferromagnetic/heavy-metal bilayers is studied by means of micromagnetic simulations. In the presence of interfacial Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction, the nucleated walls naturally adopt a homochiral configuration with internal magnetization pointing antiparallely. The interaction between these walls was analyzed and described in terms of a classical dipolar force between the magnetic moments of the walls, which couples their dynamics. Additionally, the current-induced motion of two homochiral walls in the presence of longitudinal fields was also studied by means of a simple one-dimensional model and micromagnetic modeling, considering both one free-defect strip and another one with random edge roughness. It is evidenced that in the presence of pinning due to edge roughness, the in-plane longitudinal field introduces an asymmetry in the current-induced depinning, in agreement with recent experimental results.

Cigarette smoking in military pilots and intima-media thickness of the carotid arteries

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jovelić Stojan

2005-01-01

Full Text Available Background. It is well known that smoking is associated with an increase in arterial wall thickness. However, most studies of this problem have been undertaken in age and sex heterogeneous groups, as well as in patients with already present other conventional risk factors. The aim of this study was to assess the effect of cigarette smoking on arterial wall thickness of the common carotid artery in asymptomatic pilots. Methods. The imaging of intima−media thickness of the posterior wall of the distal 1 cm of both common carotid arteries was performed using a B mode ultrasound device, in 39 pilots (37.05 ± 6.66 years, for whom smoking was the single cardiovascular risk factor. Comparisons were made with 49 non-smokers (35.12 ± 7.39 years. Results. The posterior walls of both common carotid arteries were thicker in smokers (left, p < 0.05; right, p > 0,05. Intima-media thickness was significantly lower on the right side than on the left side in both smokers and nonsmokers (p < 0.01. Conclusion. Cigarette smoking as the single cardiovascular risk factor was associated with the wall thickness of the carotid arteries in our study. This finding indicated that early atherosclerosis was already present in pilots - smokers entering middle age.

Triglyceride glucose index and common carotid wall shear stress.

Science.gov (United States)

Tripolino, Cesare; Irace, Concetta; Scavelli, Faustina B; de Franceschi, Maria S; Esposito, Teresa; Carallo, Claudio; Gnasso, Agostino

2014-02-01

Alterations in wall shear stress contribute to both clinical and subclinical atherosclerosis. Several conditions such as hypertension, diabetes, and obesity can impair shear stress, but the role of insulin resistance has never been investigated. The present study was designed to investigate whether insulin resistance assessed by TyG Index associates with wall shear stress in the common carotid artery. One hundred six individuals were enrolled. Blood pressure, lipids, glucose, and cigarette smoking were evaluated. TyG Index was calculated as log[fasting triglycerides × fasting glucose / 2]. Subjects underwent blood viscosity measurement and echo-Doppler evaluation of carotid arteries to calculate wall shear stress. The association between TyG Index and carotid wall shear stress was assessed by simple and multiple regression analyses. TyG Index was significantly and inversely associated with carotid wall shear stress both in simple (r = -0.44, P glucose greater than 100 mg/dL, and triglycerides greater than 150 mg/dL. The present findings suggest that increasing insulin resistance, as assessed by TyG Index, associates with atherosclerosis-prone shear stress reduction in the common carotid artery.

Dynamics of enhanced mitochondrial respiration in female compared with male rat cerebral arteries.

Science.gov (United States)

Rutkai, Ibolya; Dutta, Somhrita; Katakam, Prasad V; Busija, David W

2015-11-01

Mitochondrial respiration has never been directly examined in intact cerebral arteries. We tested the hypothesis that mitochondrial energetics of large cerebral arteries ex vivo are sex dependent. The Seahorse XFe24 analyzer was used to examine mitochondrial respiration in isolated cerebral arteries from adult male and female Sprague-Dawley rats. We examined the role of nitric oxide (NO) on mitochondrial respiration under basal conditions, using N(ω)-nitro-l-arginine methyl ester, and following pharmacological challenge using diazoxide (DZ), and also determined levels of mitochondrial and nonmitochondrial proteins using Western blot, and vascular diameter responses to DZ. The components of mitochondrial respiration including basal respiration, ATP production, proton leak, maximal respiration, and spare respiratory capacity were elevated in females compared with males, but increased in both male and female arteries in the presence of the NOS inhibitor. Although acute DZ treatment had little effect on mitochondrial respiration of male arteries, it decreased the respiration in female arteries. Levels of mitochondrial proteins in Complexes I-V and the voltage-dependent anion channel protein were elevated in female compared with male cerebral arteries. The DZ-induced vasodilation was greater in females than in males. Our findings show that substantial sex differences in mitochondrial respiratory dynamics exist in large cerebral arteries and may provide the mechanistic basis for observations that the female cerebral vasculature is more adaptable after injury. Copyright © 2015 the American Physiological Society.

Renal hemodynamics: the influence of the renal artery ostium flow diverter

Science.gov (United States)

Rossmann, Jenn Stroud; Albert, Scott; Balaban, Robert

2013-11-01

The recently identified renal artery ostium flow diverter may preferentially direct blood flow to the renal arteries, and may also influence flow patterns and recirculation known to be involved in atherogenesis. Three-dimensional computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations of steady and pulsatile blood flow are performed to investigate the influence of diverter size and position, and vascular geometry, on the flow patterns and fluid mechanical forces in the neighborhood of the diverter. CFD results show that the flow diverter does affect the blood distribution: depending on the diverter's position, the flow to the renal arteries may be increased or reduced. The results of simulations also show the diverter's effect on the Wall Shear Stress (WSS) distribution, and suggest that the diverter contributes to an atherogenic environment in the abdominal aorta, while being atheroprotective in the renal arteries themselves. These results support previous clinical findings, and suggest directions for further clinical study. The results of this work have direct implications in understanding the physiological significance of the diverter, and its potential role in the pathophysiological development of atherosclerosis.

Measurement system for an in-vitro characterization of the biomechanics and hemodynamics of arterial bifurcations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Suárez-Bagnasco, D; Balay, G; Negreira, C A; Cymberknop, L; Armentano, R L

2013-01-01

Arterial behaviour in-vivo is influenced, amongst other factors, by the interaction between blood flow and the arterial wall endothelium, and the biomechanical properties of the arterial wall. This interaction plays an important role in pathogenic mechanisms of cardiovascular diseases such as atherosclerosis and arteriosclerosis. To quantify these interactions both from biomechanical and hemodynamical standpoints, a complete characterization and modelling of the arterial wall, blood flow, shear wall and circumferential wall stresses are needed. The development of a new multi-parameter measurement system (distances, pressures, flows, velocity profiles, temperature, viscosity) for an in-vitro characterization of the biomechanics and hemodynamics in arterial bifurcations (specially in carotid bifurcations) is described. This set-up represents an improvement relative to previous set-ups developed by the group FCIEN-FMED and is presently under development. Main subsystems interactions and environment-system interactions were identified and compensated to improve system's performance. Several interesting problems related with signal acquisition using a variety of sensors and some experimental results are shown and briefly discussed. Experimental data allow construction of meshes and parameter estimation of the biomechanical properties of the arterial wall, as well as boundary conditions, all suitable to be employed in CFD and FSI numerical simulation.

The effect of an apolipoprotein A-I-containing high-density lipoprotein-mimetic particle (CER-001) on carotid artery wall thickness in patients with homozygous familial hypercholesterolemia: The Modifying Orphan Disease Evaluation (MODE) study.

Science.gov (United States)

Hovingh, G Kees; Smits, Loek P; Stefanutti, Claudia; Soran, Handrean; Kwok, See; de Graaf, Jacqueline; Gaudet, Daniel; Keyserling, Constance H; Klepp, Heather; Frick, Jennifer; Paolini, John F; Dasseux, Jean-Louis; Kastelein, John J P; Stroes, Erik S

2015-05-01

Patients with homozygous familial hypercholesterolemia (HoFH) are at extremely elevated risk for early cardiovascular disease because of exposure to elevated low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C) plasma levels from birth. Lowering LDL-C by statin therapy is the cornerstone for cardiovascular disease prevention, but the residual risk in HoFH remains high, emphasizing the need for additional therapies. In the present study, we evaluated the effect of serial infusions with CER-001, a recombinant human apolipoprotein A-I (apoA-I)-containing high-density lipoprotein-mimetic particle, on carotid artery wall dimensions in patients with HoFH. Twenty-three patients (mean age 39.4 ± 13.5 years, mean LDL-C 214.2 ± 81.5 mg/dL) with genetically confirmed homozygosity or compound heterozygosity for LDLR, APOB, PCSK9, or LDLRAP1 mutations received 12 biweekly infusions with CER-001 (8 mg/kg). Before and 1 hour after the first infusion, lipid values were measured. Magnetic resonance imaging (3-T magnetic resonance imaging) scans of the carotid arteries were acquired at baseline and after 24 weeks to assess changes in artery wall dimensions. After CER-001 infusion, apoA-I increased from 114.8 ± 20.7 mg/dL to 129.3 ± 23.0 mg/dL. After 24 weeks, mean vessel wall area (primary end point) decreased from 17.23 to 16.75 mm(2) (P = .008). A trend toward reduction of mean vessel wall thickness was observed (0.75 mm at baseline and 0.74 mm at follow-up, P = .0835). In HoFH, 12 biweekly infusions with an apoA-I-containing high-density lipoprotein-mimetic particle resulted in a significant reduction in carotid mean vessel wall area, implying that CER-001 may reverse atherogenic changes in the arterial wall on top of maximal low-density lipoprotein-lowering therapy. This finding supports further clinical evaluation of apoA-I-containing particles in patients with HoFH. Copyright © 2015 Mosby, Inc. All rights reserved.

Imaging of vascular dynamics within the foot using dynamic diffuse optical tomography to diagnose peripheral arterial disease

Science.gov (United States)

Khalil, M. A.; Kim, H. K.; Hoi, J. W.; Kim, I.; Dayal, R.; Shrikande, G.; Hielscher, A. H.

2013-03-01

Peripheral Arterial Disease (PAD) is the narrowing of the functional area of the artery generally due to atherosclerosis. It affects between 8-12 million people in the United States and if untreated this can lead to ulceration, gangrene and ultimately amputation. The current diagnostic method for PAD is the ankle-brachial index (ABI). The ABI is a ratio of the patient's systolic blood pressure in the foot to that of the brachial artery in the arm, a ratio below 0.9 is indicative of affected vasculature. However, this method is ineffective in patients with calcified arteries (diabetic and end-stage renal failure patients), which falsely elevates the ABI recording resulting in a false negative reading. In this paper we present our results in a pilot study to deduce optical tomography's ability to detect poor blood perfusion in the foot. We performed an IRB approved 30 patient study, where we imaged the feet of the enrolled patients during a five stage dynamic imaging sequence. The patients were split up into three groups: 10 healthy subjects, 10 PAD patients and 10 PAD patients with diabetes and they were imaged while applying a pressure cuff to their thigh. Differences in the magnitude of blood pooling in the foot and rate at which the blood pools in the foot are all indicative of arterial disease.

Substrate clamping effects on irreversible domain wall dynamics in lead zirconate titanate thin films.

Science.gov (United States)

Griggio, F; Jesse, S; Kumar, A; Ovchinnikov, O; Kim, H; Jackson, T N; Damjanovic, D; Kalinin, S V; Trolier-McKinstry, S

2012-04-13

The role of long-range strain interactions on domain wall dynamics is explored through macroscopic and local measurements of nonlinear behavior in mechanically clamped and released polycrystalline lead zirconate-titanate (PZT) films. Released films show a dramatic change in the global dielectric nonlinearity and its frequency dependence as a function of mechanical clamping. Furthermore, we observe a transition from strong clustering of the nonlinear response for the clamped case to almost uniform nonlinearity for the released film. This behavior is ascribed to increased mobility of domain walls. These results suggest the dominant role of collective strain interactions mediated by the local and global mechanical boundary conditions on the domain wall dynamics. The work presented in this Letter demonstrates that measurements on clamped films may considerably underestimate the piezoelectric coefficients and coupling constants of released structures used in microelectromechanical systems, energy harvesting systems, and microrobots.

Numerical Investigation on Dynamic Crushing Behavior of Auxetic Honeycombs with Various Cell-Wall Angles

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Xin-chun Zhang

2015-02-01

Full Text Available Auxetic honeycombs have proven to be an attractive advantage in actual engineering applications owing to their unique mechanical characteristic and better energy absorption ability. The in-plane dynamic crushing behaviors of the honeycombs with various cell-wall angles are studied by means of explicit dynamic finite element simulation. The influences of the cell-wall angle, the impact velocity, and the edge thickness on the macro/microdeformation behaviors, the plateau stresses, and the specific energy absorption of auxetic honeycombs are discussed in detail. Numerical results show, that except for the impact velocity and the edge thickness, the in-plane dynamic performances of auxetic honeycombs also rely on the cell-wall angle. The “> <”-mode local deformation bands form under low- or moderate-velocity impacting, which results in lateral compression shrinkage and shows negative Poisson's ratio during the crushing. For the given impact velocity, the plateau stress at the proximal end and the energy-absorbed ability can be improved by increasing the negative cell angle, the relative density, the impact velocity, and the matrix material strength. When the microcell parameters are the constant, the plateau stresses are proportional to the square of impact velocity.

Super-resolution microscopy reveals cell wall dynamics and peptidoglycan architecture in ovococcal bacteria.

Science.gov (United States)

Wheeler, Richard; Mesnage, Stéphane; Boneca, Ivo G; Hobbs, Jamie K; Foster, Simon J

2011-12-01

Cell morphology and viability in Eubacteria is dictated by the architecture of peptidoglycan, the major and essential structural component of the cell wall. Although the biochemical composition of peptidoglycan is well understood, how the peptidoglycan architecture can accommodate the dynamics of growth and division while maintaining cell shape remains largely unknown. Here, we elucidate the peptidoglycan architecture and dynamics of bacteria with ovoid cell shape (ovococci), which includes a number of important pathogens, by combining biochemical analyses with atomic force and super-resolution microscopies. Atomic force microscopy analysis showed preferential orientation of the peptidoglycan network parallel to the short axis of the cell, with distinct architectural features associated with septal and peripheral wall synthesis. Super-resolution three-dimensional structured illumination fluorescence microscopy was applied for the first time in bacteria to unravel the dynamics of peptidoglycan assembly in ovococci. The ovococci have a unique peptidoglycan architecture and growth mode not observed in other model organisms. © 2011 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Alterations of carotid arterial mechanics preceding the wall thickening in patients with hypertension.

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Sung-Ai; Park, Sun-Hee; Jo, Sang-Ho; Park, Kyoung-Ha; Kim, Hyun-Sook; Han, Sang-Jin; Park, Woo-Jung; Ha, Jong-Won

2016-05-01

Carotid intima-media thickness (cIMT) is an established surrogate marker of atherosclerosis. However, cIMT may not reflect the whole arterial changes occurring in various pathologic conditions, such as hypertension. The aim of this study was to evaluate whether vascular properties of carotid artery (CA) in patients with hypertension differ from those of patients with diabetes and controls before the progression of cIMT. Vascular properties of CA were assessed in 402 consecutive asymptomatic subjects who have normal cIMT (131 with hypertension, 151 with diabetes mellitus, and 120 controls). Conventional carotid stiffness indices calculated from vessel diameter and blood pressure, and parameters from velocity-vector imaging (VVI), including vessel area, fractional area change (FAC), radial velocity, circumferential strain, and strain rate were measured to assess the differences between the groups. In univariate analysis, both patients with hypertension and diabetes showed higher elastic modulus, lower distensibility coefficients and FAC of VVI than those of controls. However, when adjusting for baseline covariates, only FAC (odds ratio [OR] = 0.82, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.70-0.97, p = 0.025) and vessel area (OR = 2.84, 95% CI = 1.64-4.91, p hypertension from those of controls. Also, patients with hypertension showed larger vessel area than diabetes (OR = 2.58, 95% CI = 1.75-3.80, p hypertensive patients was stiffer than those of controls and positive remodeling preceded the wall thickening independent of baseline covariates. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Dynamic changes of intramural hematoma in patients with acute spontaneous internal carotid artery dissection.

Science.gov (United States)

Heldner, Mirjam R; Nedelcheva, Mila; Yan, Xin; Slotboom, Johannes; Mathier, Etienne; Hulliger, Justine; Verma, Rajeev K; Sturzenegger, Matthias; Jung, Simon; Bernasconi, Corrado; Arnold, Marcel; Wiest, Roland; Fischer, Urs

2015-08-01

We prospectively investigated temporal and spatial evolution of intramural hematomas in patients with acute spontaneous internal carotid artery dissection using repeated magnetic resonance imaging over six-months. The aim of the present study was to assess dynamic changes of intramural hematoma in patients with acute spontaneous internal carotid artery dissection at multiple follow-up time-points with T1w, PD/T2w, and magnetic resonance angiography. We performed serial multiparametric magnetic resonance imaging in 10 patients with spontaneous internal carotid artery dissection on admission, at days 1, 3, 7-14 and at months 1·5, 3, and 6. We calculated the volume and extension of the hyperintense intramural hematoma using T1w and PD/T2w fat suppressed sequences and assessed the degree of stenosis due to the hematoma using magnetic resonance angiography. Mean interval from symptom onset to first magnetic resonance imaging was two-days (SD 2·7). Two patients presented with ischemic stroke, three with transient ischemic attacks, and five with pain and local symptoms only. Nine patients had a transient increase of the intramural hematoma volume, mainly up to day 10 after symptom onset. Fifty percent had a transient increase in the degree of the internal carotid artery stenosis on MRA, one resulting in a temporary occlusion. Lesions older than one-week were predominantly characterized by a shift from iso- to hyperintese signal on T2w images. At three-month follow-up, intramural hematoma was no longer detectable in 80% of patients and had completely resolved in all patients after six-months. Spatial and temporal dynamics of intramural hematomas after spontaneous internal carotid artery dissection showed an early volume increase with concomitant progression of the internal carotid artery stenosis in 5 of 10 patients. Although spontaneous internal carotid artery dissection overall carries a good prognosis with spontaneous hematoma resorption in all our patients, early

The thick left ventricular wall of the giraffe heart normalises wall tension, but limits stroke volume and cardiac output

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Smerup, Morten Holdgaard; Damkjær, Mads; Brøndum, Emil

2016-01-01

Giraffes - the tallest extant animals on Earth - are renowned for their high central arterial blood pressure, which is necessary to secure brain perfusion. The pressure which may exceed 300 mmHg has historically been attributed to an exceptionally large heart. Recently, this has been refuted...... by several studies demonstrating that the mass of giraffe heart is similar to that of other mammals when expressed relative to body mass. It remains enigmatic, however, how the normal-sized giraffe heart generates such massive arterial pressures.We hypothesized that giraffe hearts have a small...... intraventricular cavity and a relatively thick ventricular wall, allowing for generation of high arterial pressures at normal left ventricular wall tension. In nine anaesthetized giraffes (495±38 kg), we determined in vivo ventricular dimensions using echocardiography along with intraventricular and aortic...

Microemulsions as model fluids for enhanced oil recovery: dynamics adjacent to planar hydrophilic walls

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Mattauch S.

2012-10-01

Full Text Available After the dynamics of microemulsions adjacent to a planar hydrophilic wall have been characterized using grazing incidence neutron spin echo spectroscopy, the model of Seifert was employed to explain the discovered acceleration for the surface near lamellar ordered membranes. Reflections of hydrodynamic waves by the wall – or the volume conservation between the membrane and the wall – explain faster relaxations and, therefore, a lubrication effect that is important for flow fields in narrow pores. The whole scenery is now spectated by using different scenarios of a bicontinuous microemulsion exposed to clay particles and of a lamellar microemulsion adjacent to a planar wall. The Seifert concept could successfully be transferred to the new problems.

Histopathology of the great vessels in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension in association with congenital heart disease: large pulmonary arteries matter too.

Science.gov (United States)

Prapa, Matina; McCarthy, Karen P; Dimopoulos, Konstantinos; Sheppard, Mary N; Krexi, Dimitra; Swan, Lorna; Wort, S John; Gatzoulis, Michael A; Ho, Siew Yen

2013-10-03

Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is considered primarily a disease of the distal pulmonary arteries whereas little is known on the effect of long-standing pulmonary hypertension on the larger proximal pulmonary arteries. This study aims to investigate the structural changes in the great arteries of adults who developed PAH in association with congenital heart disease (CHD), with severe cases termed Eisenmenger syndrome. We performed macroscopic and light microscopy analyses on the great arteries of 10 formalin-fixed human hearts from patients with PAH/CHD and compared them to age-matched healthy controls. A detailed histology grading score was used to assess the severity of medial wall abnormalities. Severe atherosclerotic lesions were found macroscopically in the elastic pulmonary arteries of 4 PAH/CHD specimens and organised thrombi in 3; none were present in the controls. Significant medial wall abnormalities were present in the pulmonary trunk (PT), including fibrosis (80%), and atypical elastic pattern (80%). Cyst-like formations were present in less than one third of patients and were severe in a single case leading to wall rupture. The cumulative PT histology grading score was significantly higher in PAH/CHD cases compared to controls (parteries. These abnormalities are likely to affect haemodynamics and contribute to morbidity and mortality in this cohort. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Dynamic film thickness between bubbles and wall in a narrow channel

Science.gov (United States)

Ito, Daisuke; Damsohn, Manuel; Prasser, Horst-Michael; Aritomi, Masanori

2011-09-01

The present paper describes a novel technique to characterize the behavior of the liquid film between gas bubbles and the wall in a narrow channel. The method is based on the electrical conductance. Two liquid film sensors are installed on both opposite walls in a narrow rectangular channel. The liquid film thickness underneath the gas bubbles is recorded by the first sensor, while the void fraction information is obtained by measuring the conductance between the pair of opposite sensors. Both measurements are taken on a large two-dimensional domain and with a high speed. This makes it possible to obtain the two-dimensional distribution of the dynamic liquid film between the bubbles and the wall. In this study, this method was applied to an air-water flow ranging from bubbly to churn regimes in the narrow channel with a gap width of 1.5 mm.

Magnetic hysteresis and domain wall dynamics in single chain magnets with antiferromagnetic interchain coupling

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bukharov, A A; Ovchinnikov, A S; Baranov, N V [Department of Physics, Ural State University, Ekaterinburg, 620083 (Russian Federation); Inoue, K [Institute for Advanced Materials Research, Hiroshima University, Hiroshima (Japan)

2010-11-03

Using Monte Carlo simulations we investigate magnetic hysteresis in two- and three-dimensional systems of weakly antiferromagnetically coupled spin chains based on a scenario of domain wall (kink) motion within the chains. By adapting the model of walkers to simulate the domain wall dynamics and using the Ising-like dipole-dipole model, we study the effects of interchain coupling, temperature and anisotropy axis direction on hysteresis curves.

Structure and dynamics of TIP3P, TIP4P, and TIP5P water near smooth and atomistic walls of different hydroaffinity

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Harrach, Michael F.; Drossel, Barbara

2014-01-01

We perform molecular dynamics simulations to observe the structure and dynamics of water using different water models (TIP3P, TIP4P, TIP5P) at ambient conditions, constrained by planar walls, which are either modeled by smooth potentials or regular atomic lattices, imitating the honeycomb-structure of graphene. We implement walls of different hydroaffinity, different lattice constant, and different types of interaction with the water molecules. We find that in the hydrophobic regime the smooth wall generally represents a good abstraction of the atomically rough walls, while in the hydrophilic regime there are noticeable differences in structure and dynamics between all stages of wall roughness. For a small lattice constant however the smooth and the atomically rough wall still share a number of structural and dynamical similarities. Out of the three water models, TIP5P water shows the largest degree of tetrahedral ordering and is often the one that is least perturbed by the presence of the wall

Pulmonary artery wave propagation and reservoir function in conscious man: impact of pulmonary vascular disease, respiration and dynamic stress tests.

Science.gov (United States)

Su, Junjing; Manisty, Charlotte; Simonsen, Ulf; Howard, Luke S; Parker, Kim H; Hughes, Alun D

2017-10-15

Wave travel plays an important role in cardiovascular physiology. However, many aspects of pulmonary arterial wave behaviour remain unclear. Wave intensity and reservoir-excess pressure analyses were applied in the pulmonary artery in subjects with and without pulmonary hypertension during spontaneous respiration and dynamic stress tests. Arterial wave energy decreased during expiration and Valsalva manoeuvre due to decreased ventricular preload. Wave energy also decreased during handgrip exercise due to increased heart rate. In pulmonary hypertension patients, the asymptotic pressure at which the microvascular flow ceases, the reservoir pressure related to arterial compliance and the excess pressure caused by waves increased. The reservoir and excess pressures decreased during Valsalva manoeuvre but remained unchanged during handgrip exercise. This study provides insights into the influence of pulmonary vascular disease, spontaneous respiration and dynamic stress tests on pulmonary artery wave propagation and reservoir function. Detailed haemodynamic analysis may provide novel insights into the pulmonary circulation. Therefore, wave intensity and reservoir-excess pressure analyses were applied in the pulmonary artery to characterize changes in wave propagation and reservoir function during spontaneous respiration and dynamic stress tests. Right heart catheterization was performed using a pressure and Doppler flow sensor tipped guidewire to obtain simultaneous pressure and flow velocity measurements in the pulmonary artery in control subjects and patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) at rest. In controls, recordings were also obtained during Valsalva manoeuvre and handgrip exercise. The asymptotic pressure at which the flow through the microcirculation ceases, the reservoir pressure related to arterial compliance and the excess pressure caused by arterial waves increased in PAH patients compared to controls. The systolic and diastolic rate constants

Dynamics of domain wall networks with junctions

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Avelino, P. P.; Oliveira, J. C. R. E.; Martins, C. J. A. P.; Menezes, J.; Menezes, R.

2008-01-01

We use a combination of analytic tools and an extensive set of the largest and most accurate three-dimensional field theory numerical simulations to study the dynamics of domain wall networks with junctions. We build upon our previous work and consider a class of models which, in the limit of large number N of coupled scalar fields, approaches the so-called ''ideal'' model (in terms of its potential to lead to network frustration). We consider values of N between N=2 and N=20, and a range of cosmological epochs, and we also compare this class of models with other toy models used in the past. In all cases we find compelling evidence for a gradual approach to scaling, strongly supporting our no-frustration conjecture. We also discuss the various possible types of junctions (including cases where there is a hierarchy of them) and their roles in the dynamics of the network. Finally, we provide a cosmological Zel'dovich-type bound on the energy scale of this kind of defect network: it must be lower than 10 keV.

Age-Specific and Sexual Variability of Morphological and Biomechanical Parameters of the Basilar Artery of Adult People

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V.N. Nicolenko

2009-06-01

Full Text Available For the purpose of studying of morphological and biomechanical parameters of the basilar artery in an experiment on monoaxonic distension by tensile-testing machine Tira Test 28005 (Germany with a loading cell — 100 N we determined general solidity, breaking point, maximum and relative deformation of the artery. Preliminary under a microscope on cross-section cuts we measured the external diameter of the artery, its wall thickness and calculated the diameter of the lumen. In total, 114 basilar arteries (66 — from corpses of men, 48 — from corpses of women have been investigated. They were received not later than 16 hours after autopsy of adult people, whose cause of death has not been connected with a sharp vascular cerebral pathology. The statistically authentic prevalence of the size of wall thickness and general solidity of the men’s artery wall was revealed. In age aspect the external diameter, the lumen diameter and the wall thickness of the basilar artery increase. At the same time the solidity of the wall decreases and its ability to prolongation increases.

Influence of Dissipative Particle Dynamics parameters and wall models on planar micro-channel flows

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Yuyi; She, Jiangwei; Zhou, Zhe-Wei; microflow Group Team

2017-11-01

Dissipative Particle Dynamics (DPD) is a very effective approach in simulating mesoscale hydrodynamics. The influence of solid boundaries and DPD parameters are typically very strong in DPD simulations. The present work studies a micro-channel Poisseuille flow. Taking the neutron scattering experiment and molecular dynamics simulation result as bench mark, the DPD results of density distribution and velocity profile are systematically studied. The influence of different levels of coarse-graining, the number densities of wall and fluid, conservative force coefficients, random and dissipative force coefficients, different wall model and reflective boundary conditions are discussed. Some mechanisms behind such influences are discussed and the artifacts in the simulation are identified with the bench mark. Chinese natural science foundation (A020405).

Pea border cell maturation and release involve complex cell wall structural dynamics

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mravec, Jozef; Guo, Xiaoyuan; Hansen, Aleksander Riise

2017-01-01

The adhesion of plant cells is vital for support and protection of the plant body and is maintained by a variety of molecular associations between cell wall components. In some specialized cases though, plant cells are programmed to detach and root cap-derived border cells are examples of this....... Border cells (in some species known as border-like cells) provide an expendable barrier between roots and the environment. Their maturation and release is an important but poorly characterized cell separation event. To gain a deeper insight into the complex cellular dynamics underlying this process, we...... undertook a systematic, detailed analysis of pea (Pisum sativum) root tip cell walls. Our study included immuno-carbohydrate microarray profiling, monosaccharide composition determination, Fourier-transformed infrared microspectroscopy (FT-IR), quantitative RT-PCR of cell wall biosynthetic genes, analysis...

Numerical study of acoustically driven bubble cloud dynamics near a rigid wall.

Science.gov (United States)

Ma, Jingsen; Hsiao, Chao-Tsung; Chahine, Georges L

2018-01-01

The dynamics of a bubble cloud excited by a sinusoidal pressure field near a rigid wall is studied using a novel Eulerian/Lagrangian two-phase flow model. The effects of key parameters such as the amplitude and frequency of the excitation pressure, the cloud and bubble sizes, the void fraction, and the initial standoff distance on the bubbles' collective behavior and the resulting pressure loads on the nearby wall are investigated. The study shows that nonlinear bubble cloud dynamics becomes more pronounced and results in higher pressure loading at the wall as the excitation pressure amplitude increases. The strongest collective bubble behavior occurs at a preferred resonance frequency. At this resonance frequency, pressure peaks orders of magnitudes higher than the excitation pressure result from the bubble interaction when the amplitude of the pressure excitation is high. The numerically obtained resonance frequency is significantly different from the reported natural frequency of a spherical cloud derived from linear theory, which assumes small amplitude oscillations in an unbounded medium. At high amplitudes of the excitation, the resonance frequency decreases almost linearly with the ratio of excitation pressure amplitude to ambient pressure until the ratio is larger than one. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Evaluation of renal artery and renal masses using enhanced dynamic MRI. Three-dimensional volumetric interpolated breath-hold examination

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ishikawa, Aimi; Kakizaki, Dai; Ito, Naoki; Shindou, Hiroaki; Ozuki, Taizou; Abe, Kimihiko; Sasaki, Kazuyoshi; Katsuyama, Hiroaki

2003-01-01

The purpose of this study was to evaluate of three-dimensional volumetric interpolated breathhold examination (3D-VIBE) for imaging renal arteries in renal tumor surgery. Twenty four patients to evaluate renal arteries, and 30 patients for staging of renal tumors. For evaluation of renal arteries, the number of renal arteries and secondary branches, and the RA ratio (renal artery diameter per aorta diameter) were investigated. For tumor evaluation, we investigated T factor and presence and condition of tumor capsule, 3D-VIBE was performed with a MAGNETOM Symphony (Siemens, Erlangen, Germany). Before the dynamic study, we measured renal artery acquisition time with 1 ml of contrast material (Gd-DTPA) and 20 ml of physiological saline solution injected into a hand vein at a rate of 3 ml/sec using an automatic injector. The first phase was set for arrival of the Gd-DTPA at the renal artery, the 2nd for 40 sec after the 1st phase, and the 3rd 180 sec after injection. Then we started scanning with 19 ml of Gd-DTPA and 20 ml of physiological saline solution. Maximum intensity projection (MIP) and multiplanar reconstruction (MFR) were reconstructed by the image data set. All renal arteries were correctly counted In one case, a branch of the superior mesenteric artery (SMA) was mistaken for a renal artery, but correctly identified using a stereo view. The rate of depiction of secondary branches was 86% compared with RA ratio which was significantly smaller than on aortic angiography (p<0.05). The findings for 5 tumors were confirmed by CT, but differed pathologically. We believe 3D-VIBE is useful dynamic CT for evaluation of renal arteries and preoperative classification of renal tumors. (author)

Hypertrophic remodeling and increased arterial stiffness in patients with intracranial aneurysms.

Science.gov (United States)

Maltete, David; Bellien, Jeremy; Cabrejo, Lucie; Iacob, Michele; Proust, François; Mihout, Bruno; Thuillez, Christian; Guegan-Massardier, Evelyne; Joannides, Robinson

2010-08-01

Because an underlying arteriopathy might contribute to the development of intracranial aneurysms (IAs), we assessed the elastic properties of proximal conduit arteries in patients with IA. In 27 patients with previous ruptured IA and 27 control subjects matched for age, gender and BMI, we determined arterial pressure, internal diameter, intima-media thickness (IMT), circumferential wall stress (CWS) and elastic modulus (wall stiffness) in common carotid arteries using applanation tonometry and echotracking. Moreover, carotid augmentation index (AIx, arterial wave reflections) and carotid-to-femoral pulse wave velocity (PWV, aortic stiffness) were assessed. Compared with controls, patients with IA exhibited higher brachial and carotid systolic and diastolic blood pressures, with similar brachial but higher carotid artery pulse pressure (35 + or - 6mm Hg vs. 41 + or - 8mm Hg, P=0.014). Moreover, patients have higher PWV (7.8 + or - 1.2ms(-1) vs. 8.3 + or - 1.1ms(-1), P=0.048) and AIx (15.8 + or - 10.8% vs. 21.1 + or - 8.5%, PIA display a particular carotid artery phenotype with an exaggerated hypertrophic remodeling and altered elastic properties. Thus, a systemic arteriopathy might contribute, together with the arterial wall fatiguing effect of the increased pulsatile stress, to the pathogenesis of IA. Copyright 2010 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Dynamic analysis of horizontal axis wind turbine by thin-walled beam theory

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Jianhong; Qin, Datong; Lim, Teik C.

2010-08-01

A mixed flexible-rigid multi-body mathematical model is applied to predict the dynamic performance of a wind turbine system. Since the tower and rotor are both flexible thin-walled structures, a consistent expression for their deformations is applied, which employs a successive series of transformations to locate any point on the blade and tower relative to an inertial coordinate system. The kinetic and potential energy terms of each flexible body and rigid body are derived for use in the Lagrange approach to formulate the wind turbine system's governing equation. The mode shapes are then obtained from the free vibration solution, while the distributions of dynamic stress and displacement of the tower and rotor are computed from the forced vibration response analysis. Using this dynamic model, the influence of the tower's stiffness on the blade tip deformation is studied. From the analysis, it is evident that the proposed model not only inherits the simplicity of the traditional 1-D beam element, but also able to provide detailed information about the tower and rotor response due to the incorporation of the flexible thin-walled beam theory.

A method for automatically constructing the initial contour of the common carotid artery

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yara Omran

2013-10-01

Full Text Available In this article we propose a novel method to automatically set the initial contour that is used by the Active contours algorithm.The proposed method exploits the accumulative intensity profiles to locate the points on the arterial wall. The intensity profiles of sections that intersect the artery show distinguishable characterstics that make it possible to recognize them from the profiles of sections that do not intersect the artery walls. The proposed method is applied on ultrasound images of the transverse section of the common carotid artery, but it can be extended to be used on the images of the longitudinal section. The intensity profiles are classified using Support vector machine algorithm, and the results of different kernels are compared. The extracted features used for the classification are basically statistical features of the intensity profiles. The echogenicity of the arterial lumen, and gives the profiles that intersect the artery a special shape that helps recognizing these profiles from other general profiles.The outlining of the arterial walls may seem a classic task in image processing. However, most of the methods used to outline the artery start from a manual, or semi-automatic, initial contour.The proposed method is highly appreciated in automating the entire process of automatic artery detection and segmentation.

Computational model of collagen turnover in carotid arteries during hypertension.

Science.gov (United States)

Sáez, P; Peña, E; Tarbell, J M; Martínez, M A

2015-02-01

It is well known that biological tissues adapt their properties because of different mechanical and chemical stimuli. The goal of this work is to study the collagen turnover in the arterial tissue of hypertensive patients through a coupled computational mechano-chemical model. Although it has been widely studied experimentally, computational models dealing with the mechano-chemical approach are not. The present approach can be extended easily to study other aspects of bone remodeling or collagen degradation in heart diseases. The model can be divided into three different stages. First, we study the smooth muscle cell synthesis of different biological substances due to over-stretching during hypertension. Next, we study the mass-transport of these substances along the arterial wall. The last step is to compute the turnover of collagen based on the amount of these substances in the arterial wall which interact with each other to modify the turnover rate of collagen. We simulate this process in a finite element model of a real human carotid artery. The final results show the well-known stiffening of the arterial wall due to the increase in the collagen content. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

A model of cell-wall dynamics during sporulation in Bacillus subtilis

Science.gov (United States)

Yap, Li-Wei; Endres, Robert G.

To survive starvation, Bacillus subtilis forms durable spores. After asymmetric cell division, the septum grows around the forespore in a process called engulfment, but the mechanism of force generation is unknown. Here, we derived a novel biophysical model for the dynamics of cell-wall remodeling during engulfment based on a balancing of dissipative, active, and mechanical forces. By plotting phase diagrams, we predict that sporulation is promoted by a line tension from the attachment of the septum to the outer cell wall, as well as by an imbalance in turgor pressures in the mother-cell and forespore compartments. We also predict that significant mother-cell growth hinders engulfment. Hence, relatively simple physical principles may guide this complex biological process.

Imaging of Post-Traumatic Cardiac Rhabdomyolysis with Normal Coronary Arteries

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Filippo, M. de; Blasi, M. de; Paoli, G.; Sverzellati, N.; Beghi, C.; Ardissino, D.; Zompatori, M.

2006-01-01

Numerous cases of acute myocardial infarction (AMI) have been reported in the literature following closed chest injuries, due to post-traumatic dissection or thrombosis of a coronary artery. In the follow-up of AMI, wall thickness during diastole and systole provides important information on heart viability. Multidetector computed tomography (MDCT) is currently the only noninvasive instrumental investigation which provides an appreciable assessment of the coronary arteries, as well as heart wall thickness measurements. We describe and discuss the clinical and imaging findings, especially of MDCT, in a case of post-traumatic regional myocardial necrosis with normal coronary arteries

Imaging of Post-Traumatic Cardiac Rhabdomyolysis with Normal Coronary Arteries

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Filippo, M. de; Blasi, M. de; Paoli, G.; Sverzellati, N.; Beghi, C.; Ardissino, D.; Zompatori, M. [Univ. of Parma, Parma Hospital, Parma (Italy). Dept. of Clinical Sciences, Section of Radiological Sciences

2006-11-15

Numerous cases of acute myocardial infarction (AMI) have been reported in the literature following closed chest injuries, due to post-traumatic dissection or thrombosis of a coronary artery. In the follow-up of AMI, wall thickness during diastole and systole provides important information on heart viability. Multidetector computed tomography (MDCT) is currently the only noninvasive instrumental investigation which provides an appreciable assessment of the coronary arteries, as well as heart wall thickness measurements. We describe and discuss the clinical and imaging findings, especially of MDCT, in a case of post-traumatic regional myocardial necrosis with normal coronary arteries.

Angiogenesis in hepatocellular carcinoma: correlation of single-level dynamic spiral CT scans in arterial phase and expression of α-smooth muscle actin

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liu Yan; Min Pengqiu; Chen Weixia; Zhang Lin

2005-01-01

Objective: To investigate the correlation between the single-level dynamic spiral CT scans (SDCT) of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in arterial phase (AP) and the immunohistochemistry expression of α-smooth muscle actin (ASMA). Methods: 33 cases of suspected HCC undergoing spiral CT plain scan of the whole liver, the single-level dynamic scan of the target level of lesion in AP and finally the whole liver scan in portal-venous phase before operations and proved after were included into the study. After the SDCT, a time-density curve (T-DC) was drawn according to the density change of the region of interest (ROI) of the tumor parenchyma with some parameters calculated, and signs of enhancement evaluated. Slices of post-operation specimen underwent hemotoxylin-eosin (HE) and ASMA immunohistochemistry staining. Then the slices were evaluated with emphases on the ASMA-positive neovasculatures in the parenchyma and mesenchyma of carcinomas, and the average count in a low microscopic field (x 100) was recorded (5 low microscopic field were observed and then an average was calculated.). Finally the immunohistochemistry and histologic results were correlated with image findings. Results: According to the PV of the tumor parenchyma, T-DC was divided into type I, II and III in which the criteria were PV>80, 40 HU< PV< 80 HU and PV<40 HU respectively. In the 33 cases, type I, II and III of T-DC were 3, 17 and 13 cases with PV of 103.30, 57.65 and 33.55 HU respectively. In ASMA immunohistochemistry study, ASMA-positive neovasculatures were devided into type A with a thick wall and B with a thin wall. The mean count of neovasculatures of tumor parenchyma in type I, II and III of T-DC were 10, 4.59 and 1 respectively. Statistically, different types of T-DC were significantly correlated with the count of neovasculatures in the parenchyma of carcinomas (r=-0.567, P<0.01). Homogeneous and inhomogeneous enhancement of carcinomas during SDCT in AP were correlated with the

Simulations of Magnetohemodynamics in Stenosed Arteries in Diabetic or Anemic Models

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Aiman Alshare

2016-01-01

Full Text Available Pulsatile flow simulations of non-Newtonian blood flow in an axisymmetric multistenosed artery, subjected to a static magnetic field, are performed using FLUENT. The influence of artery size and magnetic field intensity on transient wall shear stress, mean shear stress, and pressure drop is investigated. Three different types of blood, namely, healthy, diabetic, and anemic are considered. It is found that using Newtonian viscosity model of blood in contrast to Carreau model underestimates the pressure drop and wall shear stress by nearly 34% and 40%, respectively. In addition, it is found that using a magnetic field increases the pressure drop by 15%. Generally, doubling the artery diameter reduces the wall shear stress approximately by 1.6 times. Also increasing the stenosis level from moderate to severe results in reduction of the shear stress by 1.6 times. Furthermore, doubling the diameter of moderately stenosed artery results in nearly 3-fold decrease in pressure drop. It is also found that diabetic blood results in higher shear stress and greater pressure drop in comparison to healthy blood, whereas anemic blood has a decreasing effect on both wall shear stress and pressure drop in comparison to healthy blood.

Domain walls dynamics in the amorphous ribbon with a helical magnetic anisotropy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhmetko, D.N.; Savin, V.V.; Lemish, P.V.; Troschenkov, Y.N.

2006-01-01

The damping mechanism for motion of domain walls, which form the sandwich structure and move from the middle plane of the ribbon to opposite surfaces during the dynamic magnetization reversal, have been investigated. The difference between the real and ideal sandwich domain structure, the actual distribution of the anisotropy easy directions through the ribbon thickness and the M-bar s deviation from local easy directions under the action of applied magnetic field have been taken into account. It was revealed that the maximum of the total damping coefficient β tot (x) near the half-way of the domain wall run is due to the influence of the magnetic stray fields. These fields have a character of irregular oscillations and are directed approximately perpendicular to the local easy direction of the ribbon layer through which the domain wall propagates. The damping coefficient β e.c. (x) determined by eddy-currents has the maximal value close to the ribbon middle and decreases linearly to zero when the domain wall approaches the ribbon surface

Interplay of domain walls and magnetization rotation on dynamic magnetization process in iron/polymer–matrix soft magnetic composites

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dobák, Samuel, E-mail: samuel.dobak@student.upjs.sk [Institute of Physics, Faculty of Science, Pavol Jozef Šafárik University, Park Angelinum 9, 041 54 Košice (Slovakia); Füzer, Ján; Kollár, Peter [Institute of Physics, Faculty of Science, Pavol Jozef Šafárik University, Park Angelinum 9, 041 54 Košice (Slovakia); Fáberová, Mária; Bureš, Radovan [Institute of Materials Research, Slovak Academy of Sciences, Watsonova 47, 043 53 Košice (Slovakia)

2017-03-15

This study sheds light on the dynamic magnetization process in iron/resin soft magnetic composites from the viewpoint of quantitative decomposition of their complex permeability spectra into the viscous domain wall motion and magnetization rotation. We present a comprehensive view on this phenomenon over the broad family of samples with different average particles dimension and dielectric matrix content. The results reveal the pure relaxation nature of magnetization processes without observation of spin resonance. The smaller particles and higher amount of insulating resin result in the prevalence of rotations over domain wall movement. The findings are elucidated in terms of demagnetizing effects rising from the heterogeneity of composite materials. - Highlights: • A first decomposition of complex permeability into domain wall and rotation parts in soft magnetic composites. • A pure relaxation nature of dynamic magnetization processes. • A complete loss separation in soft magnetic composites. • The domain walls activity is considerably suppressed in composites with smaller iron particles and higher matrix content. • The demagnetizing field acts as a significant factor at the dynamic magnetization process.

Internal carotid artery rupture caused by carotid shunt insertion.

Science.gov (United States)

Illuminati, Giulio; Caliò, Francesco G; Pizzardi, Giulia; Vietri, Francesco

2015-01-01

Shunting is a well-accepted method of maintaining cerebral perfusion during carotid endarterectomy (CEA). Nonetheless, shunt insertion may lead to complications including arterial dissection, embolization, and thrombosis. We present a complication of shunt insertion consisting of arterial wall rupture, not reported previously. A 78-year-old woman underwent CEA combined with coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG). At the time of shunt insertion an arterial rupture at the distal tip of the shunt was detected and was repaired via a small saphenous vein patch. Eversion CEA and subsequent CABG completed the procedure whose postoperative course was uneventful. Shunting during combined CEA-CABG may be advisable to assure cerebral protection from possible hypoperfusion due to potential hemodynamic instability of patients with severe coronary artery disease. Awareness and prompt management of possible shunt-related complications, including the newly reported one, may contribute to limiting their harmful effect. Arterial wall rupture is a possible, previously not reported, shunt-related complication to be aware of when performing CEA. Copyright © 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.

"Sausage-string" appearance of arteries and arterioles can be caused by an instability of the blood vessel wall

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jacobsen, Jens Christian Brings; Beierholm, Ulrik; Mikkelsen, Rene

2002-01-01

Vascular damage induced by acute hypertension is preceded by a peculiar pattern where blood vessels show alternating regions of constrictions and dilations ("sausages on a string"). The pattern occurs in the smaller blood vessels, and it plays a central role in causing the vascular damage. A rela...... phenomenon. Experimental data suggest that the structural changes induced by the instability may cause secondary damage to the wall of small arteries and arterioles in the form of endothelial hyperpermeability followed by local fibrinoid necrosis of the vascular wall.......Vascular damage induced by acute hypertension is preceded by a peculiar pattern where blood vessels show alternating regions of constrictions and dilations ("sausages on a string"). The pattern occurs in the smaller blood vessels, and it plays a central role in causing the vascular damage....... A related vascular pattern has been observed in larger vessels from several organs during angiography. In the larger vessels the occurrence of the pattern does not appear to be related to acute hypertension. A unifying feature between the phenomenon in large and small vessels seems to be an increase...

Metabolic liver function measured in vivo by dynamic (18)F-FDGal PET/CT without arterial blood sampling.

Science.gov (United States)

Horsager, Jacob; Munk, Ole Lajord; Sørensen, Michael

2015-01-01

Metabolic liver function can be measured by dynamic PET/CT with the radio-labelled galactose-analogue 2-[(18)F]fluoro-2-deoxy-D-galactose ((18)F-FDGal) in terms of hepatic systemic clearance of (18)F-FDGal (K, ml blood/ml liver tissue/min). The method requires arterial blood sampling from a radial artery (arterial input function), and the aim of this study was to develop a method for extracting an image-derived, non-invasive input function from a volume of interest (VOI). Dynamic (18)F-FDGal PET/CT data from 16 subjects without liver disease (healthy subjects) and 16 patients with liver cirrhosis were included in the study. Five different input VOIs were tested: four in the abdominal aorta and one in the left ventricle of the heart. Arterial input function from manual blood sampling was available for all subjects. K*-values were calculated using time-activity curves (TACs) from each VOI as input and compared to the K-value calculated using arterial blood samples as input. Each input VOI was tested on PET data reconstructed with and without resolution modelling. All five image-derived input VOIs yielded K*-values that correlated significantly with K calculated using arterial blood samples. Furthermore, TACs from two different VOIs yielded K*-values that did not statistically deviate from K calculated using arterial blood samples. A semicircle drawn in the posterior part of the abdominal aorta was the only VOI that was successful for both healthy subjects and patients as well as for PET data reconstructed with and without resolution modelling. Metabolic liver function using (18)F-FDGal PET/CT can be measured without arterial blood samples by using input data from a semicircle VOI drawn in the posterior part of the abdominal aorta.

Coupled Static and Dynamic Buckling Modelling of Thin-Walled Structures in Elastic Range Review of Selected Problems

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Kołakowski Zbigniew

2016-06-01

Full Text Available A review of papers that investigate the static and dynamic coupled buckling and post-buckling behaviour of thin-walled structures is carried out. The problem of static coupled buckling is sufficiently well-recognized. The analysis of dynamic interactive buckling is limited in practice to columns, single plates and shells. The applications of finite element method (FEM or/and analytical-numerical method (ANM to solve interaction buckling problems are on-going. In Poland, the team of scientists from the Department of Strength of Materials, Lodz University of Technology and co-workers developed the analytical-numerical method. This method allows to determine static buckling stresses, natural frequencies, coefficients of the equation describing the post-buckling equilibrium path and dynamic response of the plate structure subjected to compression load and/or bending moment. Using the dynamic buckling criteria, it is possible to determine the dynamic critical load. They presented a lot of interesting results for problems of the static and dynamic coupled buckling of thin-walled plate structures with complex shapes of cross-sections, including an interaction of component plates. The most important advantage of presented analytical-numerical method is that it enables to describe all buckling modes and the post-buckling behaviours of thin-walled columns made of different materials. Thin isotropic, orthotropic or laminate structures were considered.

Molecular dynamic simulation of Ar-Kr mixture across a rough walled nanochannel: Velocity and temperature profiles

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pooja,; Ahluwalia, P. K.; Pathania, Y.

2015-01-01

This paper presents the results from a molecular dynamics simulation of mixture of argon and krypton in the Poiseuille flow across a rough walled nanochannel. The roughness effect on liquid nanoflows has recently drawn attention The computational software used for carrying out the molecular dynamics simulations is LAMMPS. The fluid flow takes place between two parallel plates and is bounded by horizontal rough walls in one direction and periodic boundary conditions are imposed in the other two directions. Each fluid atom interacts with other fluid atoms and wall atoms through Leenard-Jones (LJ) potential with a cut off distance of 5.0. To derive the flow a constant force is applied whose value is varied from 0.1 to 0.3 and velocity profiles and temperature profiles are noted for these values of forces. The velocity profile and temperature profiles are also looked at different channel widths of nanochannel and at different densities of mixture. The velocity profile and temperature profile of rough walled nanochannel are compared with that of smooth walled nanochannel and it is concluded that mean velocity increases with increase in channel width, force applied and decrease in density also with introduction of roughness in the walls of nanochannel mean velocity again increases and results also agree with the analytical solution of a Poiseuille flow

Pressure Myography to Study the Function and Structure of isolated small arteries

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Schjørring, Olav; Carlsson, Rune; Simonsen, Ulf

2015-01-01

Small arteries play an important role in regulation of peripheral resistance and organ perfusion. Here we describe a series of the methods allowing measurements in pressurized segments of small arteries from the systemic and coronary circulation of mice as well as other species. The pressure...... myography techniques described include measurements of wall structure, wall stress, strain, and of myogenic tone. The pressurized perfused small arteries also allow evaluation of responses to increases in pressure, flow, and drugs, where the main readout is changes in vascular diameter....

Arterial Pulsations cannot Drive Intramural Periarterial Drainage: Significance for Aβ Drainage

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alexandra K. Diem

2017-08-01

Full Text Available Alzheimer's Disease (AD is the most common form of dementia and to date there is no cure or efficient prophylaxis. The cognitive decline correlates with the accumulation of amyloid-β (Aβ in the walls of capillaries and arteries. Our group has demonstrated that interstitial fluid and Aβ are eliminated from the brain along the basement membranes of capillaries and arteries, the intramural periarterial drainage (IPAD pathway. With advancing age and arteriosclerosis, the stiffness of arterial walls, this pathway fails in its function and Aβ accumulates in the walls of arteries. In this study we tested the hypothesis that arterial pulsations drive IPAD and that a valve mechanism ensures the net drainage in a direction opposite to that of the blood flow. This hypothesis was tested using a mathematical model of the drainage mechanism. We demonstrate firstly that arterial pulsations are not strong enough to produce drainage velocities comparable to experimental observations. Secondly, we demonstrate that a valve mechanism such as directional permeability of the IPAD pathway is necessary to achieve a net reverse flow. The mathematical simulation results are confirmed by assessing the pattern of IPAD in mice using pulse modulators, showing no significant alteration of IPAD. Our results indicate that forces other than the cardiac pulsations are responsible for efficient IPAD.

Positive Feedback Regulation of Agonist-Stimulated Endothelial Ca2+ Dynamics by KCa3.1 Channels in Mouse Mesenteric Arteries

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Qian, Xun; Francis, Michael; Köhler, Ralf

2014-01-01

Intermediate and small conductance KCa channels IK1 (KCa3.1) and SK3 (KCa2.3) are primary targets of endothelial Ca(2+) signals in the arterial vasculature, and their ablation results in increased arterial tone and hypertension. Activation of IK1 channels by local Ca(2+) transients from internal ...... stores or plasma membrane channels promotes arterial hyperpolarization and vasodilation. Here, we assess arteries from genetically altered IK1 knockout mice (IK1(-/-)) to determine whether IK1 channels exert a positive feedback influence on endothelial Ca(2+) dynamics....

Non-Euclidean stress-free configuration of arteries accounting for curl of axial strips sectioned from vessels.

Science.gov (United States)

Takamizawa, Keiichi; Nakayama, Yasuhide

2013-11-01

It is well known that arteries are subject to residual stress. In earlier studies, the residual stress in the arterial ring relieved by a radial cut was considered in stress analysis. However, it has been found that axial strips sectioned from arteries also curled into arcs, showing that the axial residual stresses were relieved from the arterial walls. The combined relief of circumferential and axial residual stresses must be considered to accurately analyze stress and strain distributions under physiological loading conditions. In the present study, a mathematical model of a stress-free configuration of artery was proposed using Riemannian geometry. Stress analysis for arterial walls under unloaded and physiologically loaded conditions was performed using exponential strain energy functions for porcine and human common carotid arteries. In the porcine artery, the circumferential stress distribution under physiological loading became uniform compared with that without axial residual strain, whereas a gradient of axial stress distribution increased through the wall thickness. This behavior showed almost the same pattern that was observed in a recent study in which approximate analysis accounting for circumferential and axial residual strains was performed, whereas the circumferential and axial stresses increased from the inner surface to the outer surface under a physiological condition in the human common carotid artery of a two-layer model based on data of other recent studies. In both analyses, Riemannian geometry was appropriate to define the stress-free configurations of the arterial walls with both circumferential and axial residual strains.

Intracranial vessel wall imaging at 7.0 tesla MRI

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van der Kolk, A.G.

2014-01-01

Intracranial atherosclerosis is one of the main causes of ischemic stroke. Current conventional imaging techniques assessing intracranial arterial disease in vivo only visualize the vessel wall lumen instead of the pathological vessel wall itself. Therefore, not much is known about the imaging

Development of EEM based silicon–water and silica–water wall potentials for non-reactive molecular dynamics simulations

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Junghan; Iype, Eldhose; Frijns, Arjan J.H.; Nedea, Silvia V.; Steenhoven, Anton A. van

2014-07-01

Molecular dynamics simulations of heat transfer in gases are computationally expensive when the wall molecules are explicitly modeled. To save computational time, an implicit boundary function is often used. Steele's potential has been used in studies of fluid–solid interface for a long time. In this work, the conceptual idea of Steele's potential was extended in order to simulate water–silicon and water–silica interfaces. A new wall potential model is developed by using the electronegativity-equalization method (EEM), a ReaxFF empirical force field and a non-reactive molecular dynamics package PumMa. Contact angle simulations were performed in order to validate the wall potential model. Contact angle simulations with the resulting tabulated wall potentials gave a silicon–water contact angle of 129°, a quartz–water contact angle of 0°, and a cristobalite–water contact angle of 40°, which are in reasonable agreement with experimental values.

The cell wall of Arabidopsis thaliana influences actin network dynamics.

Science.gov (United States)

Tolmie, Frances; Poulet, Axel; McKenna, Joseph; Sassmann, Stefan; Graumann, Katja; Deeks, Michael; Runions, John

2017-07-20

In plant cells, molecular connections link the cell wall-plasma membrane-actin cytoskeleton to form a continuum. It is hypothesized that the cell wall provides stable anchor points around which the actin cytoskeleton remodels. Here we use live cell imaging of fluorescently labelled marker proteins to quantify the organization and dynamics of the actin cytoskeleton and to determine the impact of disrupting connections within the continuum. Labelling of the actin cytoskeleton with green fluorescent protein (GFP)-fimbrin actin-binding domain 2 (FABD2) resulted in a network composed of fine filaments and thicker bundles that appeared as a highly dynamic remodelling meshwork. This differed substantially from the GFP-Lifeact-labelled network that appeared much more sparse with thick bundles that underwent 'simple movement', in which the bundles slightly change position, but in such a manner that the structure of the network was not substantially altered during the time of observation. Label-dependent differences in actin network morphology and remodelling necessitated development of two new image analysis techniques. The first of these, 'pairwise image subtraction', was applied to measurement of the more rapidly remodelling actin network labelled with GFP-FABD2, while the second, 'cumulative fluorescence intensity', was used to measure bulk remodelling of the actin cytoskeleton when labelled with GFP-Lifeact. In each case, these analysis techniques show that the actin cytoskeleton has a decreased rate of bulk remodelling when the cell wall-plasma membrane-actin continuum is disrupted either by plasmolysis or with isoxaben, a drug that specifically inhibits cellulose deposition. Changes in the rate of actin remodelling also affect its functionality, as observed by alteration in Golgi body motility. © The Author 2017. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Society for Experimental Biology. All rights reserved. For permissions, please email: journals.permissions@oup.com.

Breast arterial calcification and risk of carotid atherosclerosis: Focusing on the preferentially affected layer of the vessel wall

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sedighi, Nahid, E-mail: nsedighi@sina.tums.ac.ir [Department of Radiology, Shariati Hospital, Tehran University of Medical Sciences. North Kargar Ave., Tehran 14114 (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Radmard, Amir Reza, E-mail: radmard@ams.ac.ir [Department of Radiology, Shariati Hospital, Tehran University of Medical Sciences. North Kargar Ave., Tehran 14114 (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Radmehr, Ali, E-mail: radmehr@sina.tums.ac.ir [Department of Radiology, Shariati Hospital, Tehran University of Medical Sciences. North Kargar Ave., Tehran 14114 (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Hashemi, Pari, E-mail: phtums@yahoo.com [Department of Radiology, Shariati Hospital, Tehran University of Medical Sciences. North Kargar Ave., Tehran 14114 (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Hajizadeh, Abdolmahmoud, E-mail: mroomezi@yahoo.com [Department of Radiology, Shariati Hospital, Tehran University of Medical Sciences. North Kargar Ave., Tehran 14114 (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Taheri, Amir Pejman Hashemi, E-mail: hashemip@sina.tums.ac.ir [Department of Radiology, Shariati Hospital, Tehran University of Medical Sciences. North Kargar Ave., Tehran 14114 (Iran, Islamic Republic of)

2011-08-15

Objective: To assess the relationship between breast arterial calcification (BAC) detected on screening mammography and atherosclerosis of carotid arteries considering the most likely involved layer of the arterial wall. Materials and methods: A total of 537 consecutive women who underwent screening mammography were enrolled in this study. Seventy-nine subjects having BAC, aged 46-75 years, and 125 age-matched controls from those without BAC were selected for ultrasound examination of carotid arteries assessing intima-media thickness (IMT) and plaque presence. Participants were divided into three groups of risk including, low-risk: IMT < 0.6 mm without plaque, medium-risk: 0.6 mm {<=} IMT {<=} 0.8 mm without plaque and high-risk: IMT > 0.8 mm and/or plaque. Risk factors for atherosclerosis were obtained from medical records for independent effects. Results: BAC was present in 14.7% of mammograms. According to multivariable logistic regression analyses, significant association was identified between the carotid atherosclerosis risk and presence of BAC. Compared to women with IMT < 0.6 mm, those with 0.6 mm {<=} IMT{<=} 0.8 mm and IMT > 0.8 mm had OR (95% CI) of 4.88 (1.47-16.16) and 23.36 (4.54-120.14), respectively. The OR (95% CI) for carotid plaque was 3.13 (1.3-7.57). There was no interaction between IMT category and plaque. Significant associations were also detected with postmenopausal duration (P = 0.02) and hypertension (P = 0.004). Conclusion: The risk of carotid atherosclerosis increases with the presence of BAC. Women with BAC are more likely to have thicker IMT than plaque, which could be attributed to the preferentially similar affected layer of media causing thick IMT rather than plaque.

An innovative method to selectively ablate cholesterol esters from an arteriosclerotic region of the arterial wall using a free-electron laser

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Awazu, K.; Nagai, A.; Tomimasu, T.; Aizawa, K.

1998-01-01

The selective removal of cholesterol esters accumulated in the intra-cellular or extra-cellular spaces has clinical significance. In the present work we investigate the removal of cholesterol esters by using a free electron laser (FEL) in an arteriosclerotic region. Thin films of cholesteryl oleate and albumin, and the cross-section of a rabbit artery were placed on an inverted microscope stage and the changes caused by the FEL irradiation of 5.75 and 6.1 μm with 1.5-3 mW in average were monitored continuously by a CCD camera in real time. FEL irradiation at a wavelength of 5.75 μm, which is a stretching vibrational mode of the ester, was able to ablate cholesterol esters without affecting albumin and that it can also remove cholesterol esters from rabbits' arteriosclerotic arterial walls. (Copyright (c) 1998 Elsevier Science B.V., Amsterdam. All rights reserved.)

Computer model analysis of the radial artery pressure waveform.

Science.gov (United States)

Schwid, H A; Taylor, L A; Smith, N T

1987-10-01

Simultaneous measurements of aortic and radial artery pressures are reviewed, and a model of the cardiovascular system is presented. The model is based on resonant networks for the aorta and axillo-brachial-radial arterial system. The model chosen is a simple one, in order to make interpretation of the observed relationships clear. Despite its simplicity, the model produces realistic aortic and radial artery pressure waveforms. It demonstrates that the resonant properties of the arterial wall significantly alter the pressure waveform as it is propagated from the aorta to the radial artery. Although the mean and end-diastolic radial pressures are usually accurate estimates of the corresponding aortic pressures, the systolic pressure at the radial artery is often much higher than that of the aorta due to overshoot caused by the resonant behavior of the radial artery. The radial artery dicrotic notch is predominantly dependent on the axillo-brachial-radial arterial wall properties, rather than on the aortic valve or peripheral resistance. Hence the use of the radial artery dicrotic notch as an estimate of end systole is unreliable. The rate of systolic upstroke, dP/dt, of the radial artery waveform is a function of many factors, making it difficult to interpret. The radial artery waveform usually provides accurate estimates for mean and diastolic aortic pressures; for all other measurements it is an inadequate substitute for the aortic pressure waveform. In the presence of low forearm peripheral resistance the mean radial artery pressure may significantly underestimate the mean aortic pressure, as explained by a voltage divider model.

Fifteen new risk loci for coronary artery disease highlight arterial-wall-specific mechanisms

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Howson, Joanna M. M.; Zhao, Wei; Barnes, Daniel R

2017-01-01

Coronary artery disease (CAD) is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Although 58 genomic regions have been associated with CAD thus far, most of the heritability is unexplained, indicating that additional susceptibility loci await identification. An efficient discovery strategy ...

Abnormal arterial flows by a distributed model of the fetal circulation.

Science.gov (United States)

van den Wijngaard, Jeroen P H M; Westerhof, Berend E; Faber, Dirk J; Ramsay, Margaret M; Westerhof, Nico; van Gemert, Martin J C

2006-11-01

Modeling the propagation of blood pressure and flow along the fetoplacental arterial tree may improve interpretation of abnormal flow velocity waveforms in fetuses. The current models, however, either do not include a wide range of gestational ages or do not account for variation in anatomical, vascular, or rheological parameters. We developed a mathematical model of the pulsating fetoumbilical arterial circulation using Womersley's oscillatory flow theory and viscoelastic arterial wall properties. Arterial flow waves are calculated at different arterial locations from which the pulsatility index (PI) can be determined. We varied blood viscosity, placental and brain resistances, placental compliance, heart rate, stiffness of the arterial wall, and length of the umbilical arteries. The PI increases in the umbilical artery and decreases in the cerebral arteries, as a result of increasing placental resistance or decreasing brain resistance. Both changes in resistance decrease the flow through the placenta. An increased arterial stiffness increases the PIs in the entire fetoplacental circulation. Blood viscosity and peripheral bed compliance have limited influence on the flow profiles. Bradycardia and tachycardia increase and decrease the PI in all arteries, respectively. Umbilical arterial length has limited influence on the PI but affects the mean arterial pressure at the placental cord insertion. The model may improve the interpretation of arterial flow pulsations and thus may advance both the understanding of pathophysiological processes and clinical management.

The Solar Dynamic Buffer Zone (SDBZ) curtain wall: Validation and design of a solar air collector curtain wall

Science.gov (United States)

Richman, Russell Corey

Given the increases in both the environmental and economic costs of energy, there is a need to design and building more sustainable and low-energy building systems now. Curtain wall assemblies show great promise---the spandrel panels within them can be natural solar collectors. By using a Solar Dynamic Buffer Zone (SDBZ) in the spandrel cavity, solar energy can be efficiently gathered using the movement of air. There is a need for a numerical model capable of predicting performance of an SDBZ Curtain Wall system. This research designed, constructed and quantified a prototype SDBZ curtain wall system through by experimental testing in a laboratory environment. The laboratory experiments focussed on three main variables: air flow through the system, incoming radiation and collector surface type. Results from the experimental testing were used to validate a one-dimensional numerical model of the prototype. Results from this research show a SDBZ curtain wall system as an effective means of reducing building heating energy consumption through the preheating of incoming exterior ventilation air during the heating season in cold climates. The numerical model showed good correlation with experimental results at higher operating flows and at lower flows when using an apparent velocity at the heat transfer boundary layer. A seasonal simulation for Toronto, ON predicted energy savings of 205 kWh/m2 with an average seasonal efficiency of 28%. This is considered in the upper range when compared to other solar air collectors. Given the lack of published literature for similar systems, this research acts to introduce a simple, innovative approach to collect solar energy that would otherwise be lost to the exterior using already existing components within a curtain wall. Specifically, the research has provided: results from experiments and simulation, a first generation numerical model, aspects of design and construction of the SDBZ curtain wall and specific directions for further

Predicting the elastic properties of double-walled carbon nanotubes by molecular dynamics simulation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang Chenli; Shen Huishen

2008-01-01

Molecular dynamics simulation is performed on a double-walled carbon nanotube (DWCNT) to predict its elastic properties based on a double-walled shear deformable shell model. By direct buckling measurement, we present here a method for uniquely determining the effective wall thickness for the shell model. Accounting for two different kinds of DWCNTs by adding an inner or outer tube to a fiducial tube, the mechanical properties of DWCNTs are carefully investigated as compared with those of the fiducial tube. It is found that the predicted values of Young's and shear moduli depend strongly on the construction and helicity of DWCNTs, while the dependence on nanotube length is relatively small. The results also confirm that the temperature variation has a significant effect on the elastic properties of DWCNTs

Modeling the Afferent Dynamics of the Baroreflex Control System

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Ottesen, Johnny T.; Mahdi, Adam; Sturdy, Jacob

2013-01-01

of mechanoreceptors located in the BR nerve-endings, and modulation of the action potential frequency. The three sub-systems are modeled individually following well-established biological principles. The first submodel, predicting arterial wall deformation, uses blood pressure as an input and outputs circumferential...... demonstrate that our preferred model can exhibit all known dynamics and that it is advantageous to combine qualitative and quantitative analysis methods....

Simultaneous acquisition of dynamic PET-MRI: arterial input function using DSC-MRI and [18F]-FET

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Caldeira, Liliana; Yun, Seong Dae; Silva, Nuno da; Filss, Christian; Scheins, Juergen; Telmann, Lutz; Herzog, Hans; Shah, Jon [Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine - 4, Forschungszentrum Juelich GmbH (Germany)

2015-05-18

This work focuses on the study of simultaneous dynamic MR-PET acquisition in brain tumour patients. MR-based perfusion-weighted imaging (PWI) and PET [18F]-FET are dynamic methods, which allow to evaluate tumour metabolism in a quantitative way. In both methods, arterial input function (AIF) is necessary for quantification. However, the AIF estimation is a challenging task. In this work, we explore the possibilities to combine dynamic MR and PET AIF.

Simultaneous acquisition of dynamic PET-MRI: arterial input function using DSC-MRI and [18F]-FET

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Caldeira, Liliana; Yun, Seong Dae; Silva, Nuno da; Filss, Christian; Scheins, Juergen; Telmann, Lutz; Herzog, Hans; Shah, Jon

2015-01-01

This work focuses on the study of simultaneous dynamic MR-PET acquisition in brain tumour patients. MR-based perfusion-weighted imaging (PWI) and PET [18F]-FET are dynamic methods, which allow to evaluate tumour metabolism in a quantitative way. In both methods, arterial input function (AIF) is necessary for quantification. However, the AIF estimation is a challenging task. In this work, we explore the possibilities to combine dynamic MR and PET AIF.

Diagnosis of bronchiectasis and airway wall thickening in children with cystic fibrosis. Objective airway-artery quantification

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kuo, Wieying; Tiddens, Harm A.W.M.; Bruijne, Marleen de; Petersen, Jens; Nasserinejad, Kazem; Ozturk, Hadiye; Chen, Yong; Perez-Rovira, Adria

2017-01-01

To quantify airway and artery (AA)-dimensions in cystic fibrosis (CF) and control patients for objective CT diagnosis of bronchiectasis and airway wall thickness (AWT). Spirometer-guided inspiratory and expiratory CTs of 11 CF and 12 control patients were collected retrospectively. Airway pathways were annotated semi-automatically to reconstruct three-dimensional bronchial trees. All visible AA-pairs were measured perpendicular to the airway axis. Inner, outer and AWT (outer-inner) diameter were divided by the adjacent artery diameter to compute A in A-, A out A- and A WT A-ratios. AA-ratios were predicted using mixed-effects models including disease status, lung volume, gender, height and age as covariates. Demographics did not differ significantly between cohorts. Mean AA-pairs CF: 299 inspiratory; 82 expiratory. Controls: 131 inspiratory; 58 expiratory. All ratios were significantly larger in inspiratory compared to expiratory CTs for both groups (p<0.001). A out A- and A WT A-ratios were larger in CF than in controls, independent of lung volume (p<0.01). Difference of A out A- and A WT A-ratios between patients with CF and controls increased significantly for every following airway generation (p<0.001). Diagnosis of bronchiectasis is highly dependent on lung volume and more reliably diagnosed using outer airway diameter. Difference in bronchiectasis and AWT severity between the two cohorts increased with each airway generation. (orig.)

Middle cerebral artery blood velocity and cerebral blood flow and O2 uptake during dynamic exercise

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Madsen, P L; Sperling, B K; Warming, T

1993-01-01

Results obtained by the 133Xe clearance method with external detectors and by transcranial Doppler sonography (TCD) suggest that dynamic exercise causes an increase of global average cerebral blood flow (CBF). These data are contradicted by earlier data obtained during less-well-defined conditions....... To investigate this controversy, we applied the Kety-Schmidt technique to measure the global average levels of CBF and cerebral metabolic rate of oxygen (CMRO2) during rest and dynamic exercise. Simultaneously with the determination of CBF and CMRO2, we used TCD to determine mean maximal flow velocity...... in the middle cerebral artery (MCA Vmean). For values of CBF and MCA Vmean a correction for an observed small drop in arterial PCO2 was carried out. Baseline values for global CBF and CMRO2 were 50.7 and 3.63 ml.100 g-1.min-1, respectively. The same values were found during dynamic exercise, whereas a 22% (P

Numerical investigation of MHD flow of blood and heat transfer in a stenosed arterial segment

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Majee, Sreeparna; Shit, G.C., E-mail: gcs@math.jdvu.ac.in

2017-02-15

A numerical investigation of unsteady flow of blood and heat transfer has been performed with an aim to provide better understanding of blood flow through arteries under stenotic condition. The blood is treated as Newtonian fluid and the arterial wall is considered to be rigid having deposition of plaque in its lumen. The heat transfer characteristic has been analyzed by taking into consideration of the dissipation of energy due to applied magnetic field and the viscosity of blood. The vorticity-stream function formulation has been adopted to solve the problem using implicit finite difference method by developing well known Peaceman–Rachford Alternating Direction Implicit (ADI) scheme. The quantitative profile analysis of velocity, temperature and wall shear stress as well as Nusselt number is carried out over the entire arterial segment. The streamline and temperature contours have been plotted to understand the flow pattern in the diseased artery, which alters significantly in the downstream of the stenosis in the presence of magnetic field. Both the wall shear stress and Nusselt number increases with increasing magnetic field strength. However, wall shear stress decreases and Nusselt number enhances with Reynolds number. The results show that with an increase in the magnetic field strength upto 8 T, does not causes any damage to the arterial wall, but the study is significant for assessing temperature rise during hyperthermic treatment. - Highlights: • Fully numerical simulation is carried out for MHD blood flow in stenosed artery. • Dissipation of energy due to both magnetic field and blood viscosity is considered. • Strong Vortices are observed at the downstream of the stenosis in the arterial wall. • Flow reversal of blood is reduced by applying sufficient magnetic field strength. • Isothermal lines are strongly distorted in the presence of magnetic field strength.

Dynamic control of magnetic nanowires by light-induced domain-wall kickoffs

Science.gov (United States)

Heintze, Eric; El Hallak, Fadi; Clauß, Conrad; Rettori, Angelo; Pini, Maria Gloria; Totti, Federico; Dressel, Martin; Bogani, Lapo

2013-03-01

Controlling the speed at which systems evolve is a challenge shared by all disciplines, and otherwise unrelated areas use common theoretical frameworks towards this goal. A particularly widespread model is Glauber dynamics, which describes the time evolution of the Ising model and can be applied to any binary system. Here we show, using molecular nanowires under irradiation, that Glauber dynamics can be controlled by a novel domain-wall kickoff mechanism. In contrast to known processes, the kickoff has unambiguous fingerprints, slowing down the spin-flip attempt rate by several orders of magnitude, and following a scaling law. The required irradiance is very low, a substantial improvement over present methods of magneto-optical switching. These results provide a new way to control and study stochastic dynamic processes. Being general for Glauber dynamics, they can be extended to different kinds of magnetic nanowires and to numerous fields, ranging from social evolution to neural networks and chemical reactivity.

Usefulness of dynamic MR imaging for the evaluation of transcatheter arterial embolization for hepatocellular carcinoma

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kyomasu, Yoshinori; Nakayama, Masafumi; Kawakami, Mutsumi; Mashima, Yasuoki; Ichinose, Akira; Endou, Kazuo; Chiba, Kazuo; Tanno, Munehiko; Yamada, Hideo

1992-01-01

Thirteen patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) were studied with dynamic MR imaging in addition to conventional T 1 - and T 2 -weighted and enhanced T 1 -weighted images before and after the treatment of HCC by transcatheter arterial embolization (TAE). Dynamic MR imaging was performed using GRASS (gradient recalled acquisition in the steady state) sequences. The imaging was started at 10 seconds after rapid injection of Gd-diethylenetriaminepentaacetic acid (Gd-DTPA) with 6s breath hold. Thereafter about 12 images were obtained during 6s breath-holding with 20 seconds intervals. On T 1 - and T 2 -weighted images, signal intensity at the tumor tended to increase during the early period after TAE and to decrease later. Intensities of the HCC, however, were heterogeneous. Differentiation among embolic area, necrosis, viable cells and recurrent area, was often difficult only by conventional images. Dynamic GRASS images could clearly demonstrate an embolic area as a region without contrast enhancement. While recurrent tumor could be diagnosed as an area with early enhancement at the arterial phase. Development of the collateral circulation and dominancy of tumor feeding vessels after TAE could also be deduced on dynamic MR images together with enhanced T 1 -weighted images. The dynamic MR imaging was concluded to be a potentially useful procedure for the clinical evaluation of HCC after TAE. (author)

[Arterial sequelae of pregnancy hypertension. Detection by carotid piezogram].

Science.gov (United States)

Meyer-Heine, A; Asquer, J C; Lagrue, G

1989-01-01

High blood pressure (HTA) is characterized by elevation of pression, but also by modifications of arterial pulse wave. Carotid piezograms were used to evaluate arterial pulse wave. Diastolic blood pressure is significantly correlated with dicrotic notch pressure. The duration of dicrotic notch is negatively correlated with arterial wall elasticity. Thus by carotid piezogram analysis one can determine the respective participation of arterial wall elasticity, peripheral resistance and cardiac factors in blood pressure elevation. Carotid piezograms were measured in 97 women (mean age 27, 8 y), with previous hypertensive pregnancy and apparently cured (mean blood pressure 122-74 mmHg at time of examination). 25 women only had normal piezogram drawing. Abnormalities similar to that of permanent hypertensive disease were observed in most cases. Dicrotic notch duration was significantly reduced and dicrotic notch pressure enhanced; in 34 women both of these abnormalities were present. In conclusion, among women previously hypertensive during pregnancy, even when blood pressure is returned to normal, abnormalities of arterial pulse wave may be present, suggesting that these women are prone to subsequent permanent hypertension.

Experimental Investigation of Chatter Dynamics in Thin-walled Tubular Parts Turning

OpenAIRE

GERASIMENKO, Artem; GUSKOV, Mikhail; LORONG, Philippe; DUCHEMIN, Jérôme; GOUSKOV, Alexander

2016-01-01

Chatter prediction is nowadays frequently carried out for machining operations involving deformable parts or tools. These analyses are commonly based on the uncoupled elements of the system: frequency response of the deformable parts under non-rotating conditions and cutting law. The present investigation puts forward the dynamics of a thin-walled tubular part during straight axial turning undergoing chatter instability. Studied system’s peculiarities include quasi-static nominal cutting cond...

Vessel wall damage by X-rays and 15 MeV neutrons

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Aarnoudse, M.W.

1979-01-01

In two simple mucopolysaccharide systems, synovial fluid and subcutaneous connective tissue membranes, the degrading effects of 200 kVp X-rays and 15 MeV neutrons is compared. Due to the depolymerization of the mucopolysaccharides the viscosity of synovial fluid decreases and the permeability of the connective tissue membranes for saline increases after irradiation. In both systems a RBE of 0.6 has been found for fast neutrons. The atheromatous changes in the wall of elastic arteries (lipid penetration into the vessel wall and the formation of plaques consisting of large, lipid-filled foam cells) are studied in the carotid arteries of hypercholesterolemic rabbits, two months after irradiating the arteries with different doses of X-rays or neutrons. (Auth.)

Simultaneous determination of arterial input function of the internal carotid and middle cerebral arteries for dynamic susceptibility contrast MRI

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Scholdei, R.; Wenz, F.; Fuss, M.; Essig, M.; Knopp, M.V.

1999-01-01

Purpose: The determination of the arterial input function (AIF) is necessary for absolute quantification of the regional cerebral blood volume and blood flow using dynamic susceptibility contrast MRI. The suitability of different vessels (ICA-internal carotid artery, MCA-middle cerebral artery) for AIF determination was compared in this study. Methods: A standard 1.5 T MR system and a simultaneous dual FLASH sequence (TR/TE1/TE2/α=32/15/25/10 ) were used to follow a bolus of contrast agent. Slice I was chosen to cut the ICA perpendicularly. Slice II included the MCA. Seventeen data sets from ten subjects were evaluated. Results: The number of AIF-relevant pixels, the area under the AIF and the maximum concentration were all lower when the AIF was determined from the MCA compared to the ICA. Additionally, the mean transit time (MTT) and the time to maximum concentration (TTM) were longer in the MCA, complicating the computerized identification of AIF-relevant pixels. Data from one subject, who was examined five times, demonstrated that the intraindividual variance of the measured parameters was markedly lower than the interpersonal variance. Conclusions: It appears to be advantageous to measure the AIF in the ICA rather than the MCA. (orig.) [de

Nonlinear Dynamics Mechanism of Rock Burst Induced by the Instability of the Layer-Crack Plate Structure in the Coal Wall in Deep Coal Mining

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Yanlong Chen

2017-01-01

Full Text Available The instability of layer-crack plate structure in coal wall is one of the causes of rock burst. In the present paper, we investigate the formation and instability processes of layer-crack plate structure in coal wall by experiments and theoretical analysis. The results reveal that layer-crack plate structure formed near the free surface of the coal wall during the loading. During the formation of the layer-crack plate structure, the lateral displacement curve of the coal wall experiences a jagged variation, which suggests the nonlinear instability failure of the coal wall with a sudden release of the elastic energy. Then, a dynamic model for the stability analysis of the layer-crack plate structure was proposed, which takes consideration of the dynamic disturbance factor. Based on the dynamic model, the criterion for dynamic instability of the layer-crack plate structure was determined and demonstrated by an example. According to the analytical results, some control methods of dynamic stability of the layer-crack plate structure was put forward.

Application of the lattice Boltzmann model to simulated stenosis growth in a two-dimensional carotid artery

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Boyd, J; Buick, J; Cosgrove, J A; Stansell, P

2005-01-01

The lattice Boltzmann model is used to observe changes in the velocity flow and shear stress in a carotid artery model during a simulated stenosis growth. Near wall shear stress in the unstenosed artery is found to agree with literature values. The model also shows regions of low velocity, rotational flow and low near wall shear stress along parts of the walls of the carotid artery that have been identified as being prone to atherosclerosis. These regions persist during the simulated stenosis growth, suggesting that atherosclerotic plaque build-up creates regions of flow with properties that favour atherosclerotic progression

Deflection Prediction of No-Fines Lightweight Concrete Wall Using Neural Network Caused Dynamic Loads

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Ridho Bayuaji

2018-04-01

Full Text Available No-fines lightweight concrete wall with horizontal reinforcement refers to an alternative material for wall construction with an aim of improving the wall quality towards horizontal loads. This study is focused on artificial neural network (ANN application to predicting the deflection deformation caused by dynamic loads. The ANN method is able to capture the complex interactions among input/output variables in a system without any knowledge of interaction nature and without any explicit assumption to model form. This paper explains the existing data research, data selection and process of ANN modelling training process and validation. The results of this research show that the deformation can be predicted more accurately, simply and quickly due to the alternating horizontal loads.

[Morphological signs of mitochondrial cytopathy in skeletal muscles and micro-vessel walls in a patient with cerebral artery dissection associated with MELAS syndrome].

Science.gov (United States)

Sakharova, A V; Kalashnikova, L A; Chaĭkovskaia, R P; Mir-Kasimov, M F; Nazarova, M A; Pykhtina, T N; Dobrynina, L A; Patrusheva, N L; Patrushev, L I; Protskiĭ, S V

2012-01-01

Skin and muscles biopsy specimens of a patient harboring A3243G mutation in mitochondrial DNA, with dissection of internal carotid and vertebral arteries, associated with MELAS were studied using histochemical and electron-microscopy techniques. Ragged red fibers, regional variability of SDH histochemical reaction, two types of morphologically atypical mitochondria and their aggregation were found in muscle. There was correlation between SDH histochemical staining and number of mitochondria revealed by electron microscopy in muscle tissue. Similar mitochondrial abnormality, their distribution and cell lesions followed by extra-cellular matrix mineralization were found in the blood vessel walls. In line with generalization of cytopathy process caused by gene mutation it can be supposed that changes found in skin and muscle microvessels also exist in large cerebral vessels causing the vessel wall "weakness", predisposing them to dissection.

Dynamical scaling, domain-growth kinetics, and domain-wall shapes of quenched two-dimensional anisotropic XY models

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Mouritsen, Ole G.; Praestgaard, Eigil

1988-01-01

obeys dynamical scaling and the shape of the dynamical scaling function pertaining to the structure factor is found to depend on P. Specifically, this function is described by a Porod-law behavior, q-ω, where ω increases with the wall softness. The kinetic exponent, which describes how the linear domain...... infinite to zero temperature as well as to nonzero temperatures below the ordering transition. The continuous nature of the spin variables causes the domain walls to be ‘‘soft’’ and characterized by a finite thickness. The steady-state thickness of the walls can be varied by a model parameter, P. At zero...... size varies with time, R(t)∼tn, is for both models at zero temperature determined to be n≃0.25, independent of P. At finite temperatures, the growth kinetics is found to cross over to the Lifshitz-Allen-Cahn law characterized by n≃0.50. The results support the idea of two separate zero...

Pulse wave velocity as a diagnostic index: The effect of wall thickness

Science.gov (United States)

Hodis, Simona

2018-06-01

Vascular compliance is a major determinant of wave propagation within the vascular system, and hence the measurement of pulse wave velocity (PWV) is commonly used clinically as a method of detecting vascular stiffening. The accuracy of that assessment is important because vascular stiffening is a major risk factor for hypertension. PWV is usually measured by timing a pressure wave as it travels from the carotid artery to the femoral or radial artery and estimating the distance that it traveled in each case to obtain the required velocity. A major assumption on which this technique is based is that the vessel wall thickness h is negligibly small compared with the vessel radius a . The extent to which this assumption is satisfied in the cardiovascular system is not known because the ratio h /a varies widely across different regions of the vascular tree and under different pathological conditions. Using the PWV as a diagnostic test without knowing the effect of wall thickness on the measurement could lead to error when interpreting the PWV value as an index of vessel wall compliance. The aim of the present study was to extend the validity of the current practice of assessing wall stiffness by developing a method of analysis that goes beyond the assumption of a thin wall. We analyzed PWVs calculated with different wall models, depending on the ratio of wall thickness to vessel radius and the results showed that PWV is not reliable when it is estimated with the classic thin wall theory if the vessel wall is not around 25% of vessel radius. If the arterial wall is thicker than 25% of vessel radius, then the wave velocity calculated with the thin wall theory could be overestimated and in the clinical setting, this could lead to a false positive. For thicker walls, a thick wall model presented here should be considered to account for the stresses within the wall thickness that become dominant compared with the wall inertia.

[Arterial involvements in hereditary dysplasia of the connective tissue].

Science.gov (United States)

Beylot, C; Doutre, M S; Beylot-Barry, M; Busquet, M

1994-03-01

Arterial involvement is an important feature of the diagnosis and, above all, prognosis of heritable disorders of connective tissue. In pseudoxanthoma elasticum, a progressive occlusive syndrome is associated with hemorrhage and especially with gastrointestinal bleeding. Aneurysms are uncommon. Hypertension occurs frequently. Cutaneous signs (yellowish pseudo xanthomatous papules of the large folds) the ocular changes (angioid streaks) and pathology showing numerous, thickened, fragmented, disorganized, calcified elastic fibers in the deep dermis and arterial walls, allow the diagnosis to be made. In the heterogeneous group of Ehlers-Danlos syndromes, type IV is characterized by sudden spontaneous rupture of the large arteries. Aneurysms and carotido-cavernous fistulae are rather frequent. Owing to friability of the arterial walls, arteriograms and other procedure requiring arterial puncture may prove hazardous and surgery difficult. Such patients have an acrogeric morphotype, and thin, fragile skin, but cutaneous hyperelasticity and joint hyperlaxity are usually minimal. Pathology evidences collagen hypoplasia in the skin and arterial walls. The severity of Marfan syndrome is due to aortic involvement. A fusiform aneurysm of the ascending aorta represents a vital risk of rupture. Aortic root dilatation is associated and responsible of severe aortic regurgitation. Aortic dissection is also a serious threat. Improved surgical techniques for repairing a dilated or dissected aortic root with simultaneous replacement of the aortic valve increases the life expectancy of such patients. Dolichomorphism is the characteristic skeletal abnormality, particularly with arachnodactyly and upward ectopia lentis, which is almost bilateral, is a very frequent feature of Marfan syndrome. The most typical histological finding is aortic cystic median necrosis. The basic defect in Marfan syndrome concerns the fibrillin, whose gene is located on chromosome 15. The three diseases

Numerical investigation of MHD flow of blood and heat transfer in a stenosed arterial segment

Science.gov (United States)

Majee, Sreeparna; Shit, G. C.

2017-02-01

A numerical investigation of unsteady flow of blood and heat transfer has been performed with an aim to provide better understanding of blood flow through arteries under stenotic condition. The blood is treated as Newtonian fluid and the arterial wall is considered to be rigid having deposition of plaque in its lumen. The heat transfer characteristic has been analyzed by taking into consideration of the dissipation of energy due to applied magnetic field and the viscosity of blood. The vorticity-stream function formulation has been adopted to solve the problem using implicit finite difference method by developing well known Peaceman-Rachford Alternating Direction Implicit (ADI) scheme. The quantitative profile analysis of velocity, temperature and wall shear stress as well as Nusselt number is carried out over the entire arterial segment. The streamline and temperature contours have been plotted to understand the flow pattern in the diseased artery, which alters significantly in the downstream of the stenosis in the presence of magnetic field. Both the wall shear stress and Nusselt number increases with increasing magnetic field strength. However, wall shear stress decreases and Nusselt number enhances with Reynolds number. The results show that with an increase in the magnetic field strength upto 8 T, does not causes any damage to the arterial wall, but the study is significant for assessing temperature rise during hyperthermic treatment.

Prediction of dynamic contact angle histories of a bubble growing at a wall

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Geld, Cees W.M. van der

2004-01-01

A fast growing boiling bubble at the verge of detaching from a plane wall is usually shaped as a truncated sphere, and experiences various hydrodynamic forces due to its expansion and the motion of its center of mass. In a homogeneous flow field, one of the forces is the so-called bubble growth force that is essentially due to inertia. This force is usually evaluated with the aid of approximate expressions [Int. J. Heat Mass Transfer 36 (1993) 651, Int. J. Heat Mass Transfer 38 (1995) 2075]. In the present study an exact expression for the expansion force is derived for the case of a truncated sphere attached to a plane, infinite wall. The Lagrange-Thomson formalism is applied. Two Euler-Lagrange equations are derived, one governing the motion of the center of mass, the other governing expansion a kind of extended Rayleigh-Plesset equation. If a constitutive equation for the gas-vapor content of the bubble is given, initial conditions and these two differential equations determine the dynamics of the growing truncated sphere that has its foot on a plane, infinite wall. Simulations are carried out for a given expansion rate to predict the history of the dynamic contact angle. The simulations increase the understanding of mechanisms controlling detachment, and yield realistic times of detachment

Feeding Arteries of Primary Tongue Cancers on Intra-arterial Infusion Chemotherapy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kamitani, Takeshi, E-mail: kamitani@radiol.med.kyushu-u.ac.jp [Kyushu University, Department of Clinical Radiology, Graduate School of Medical Sciences (Japan); Kawanami, Satoshi, E-mail: kawanami-01@mac.com [Kyushu University, Department of Molecular Imaging and Diagnosis, Graduate School of Medical Sciences (Japan); Asayama, Yoshiki, E-mail: asayama@radiol.med.kyushu-u.ac.jp; Matsuo, Yoshio, E-mail: yymatsuo@radiol.med.kyushu-u.ac.jp; Yonezawa, Masato, E-mail: ymasato@radiol.med.kyushu-u.ac.jp; Yamasaki, Yuzo, E-mail: yyama@radiol.med.kyushu-u.ac.jp [Kyushu University, Department of Clinical Radiology, Graduate School of Medical Sciences (Japan); Nagao, Michinobu, E-mail: minagao@radiol.med.kyushu-u.ac.jp [Kyushu University, Department of Molecular Imaging and Diagnosis, Graduate School of Medical Sciences (Japan); Yamanouchi, Torahiko, E-mail: tora0228@radiol.med.kyushu-u.ac.jp [Kyushu University, Department of Clinical Radiology, Graduate School of Medical Sciences (Japan); Yabuuchi, Hidetake, E-mail: h-yabu@med.kyushu-u.ac.jp [Kyushu University, Department of Health Sciences, Graduate School of Medical Sciences (Japan); Nakamura, Katsumasa, E-mail: nakam@radiol.med.kyushu-u.ac.jp [Kyushu University, Department of Clinical Radiology, Graduate School of Medical Sciences (Japan); Nakashima, Torahiko, E-mail: nakatora@qent.med.kyushu-u.ac.jp [Kyushu University, Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Graduate School of Medical Sciences (Japan); Honda, Hiroshi, E-mail: honda@radiol.med.kyushu-u.ac.jp [Kyushu University, Department of Clinical Radiology, Graduate School of Medical Sciences (Japan)

2016-02-15

PurposeTo evaluate the frequency and the predictive factor of each feeding artery on intra-arterial infusion chemotherapy (IAIC) in primary tongue cancer.Materials and MethodsWe retrospectively evaluated 20 patients who received IAIC for primary tongue cancer. The main and accompanying feeding arteries were identified on super-selective angiography of the branches of the external carotid artery. Tumor diameter, and extension to the contralateral side, tongue extrinsic muscles (TEMs), and lateral mesopharyngeal wall were determined based on magnetic resonance imaging or computed tomography findings.ResultsThe main feeding artery was the ipsilateral lingual artery (LA) in 15 of the 20 examined tumors and the contralateral LA in the other 5. Ten cancers had only one feeding artery, and multiple feeding arteries were detected in the remaining 10. Tumors >4 cm (n = 9), those with extension to the contralateral side (n = 13), and those with extension to TEMs (n = 15) were supplied by significantly larger numbers of feeding arteries compared to tumors without these features (P = 0.01, 0.049, and 0.02, respectively). The frequency of feeding from the contralateral LA was 64 % (9/14) and 17 % (1/6) in tumors with and without extension to the contralateral side, respectively. Feeding from a facial artery (FA) was not detected in tumors ≤4 cm, while 5 of the 9 (56 %) tumors >4 cm were supplied by a FA (P = 0.01).ConclusionA careful search for feeding arteries is required, especially in large tumors with extension to the contralateral side or to TEMs.

Feeding Arteries of Primary Tongue Cancers on Intra-arterial Infusion Chemotherapy.

Science.gov (United States)

Kamitani, Takeshi; Kawanami, Satoshi; Asayama, Yoshiki; Matsuo, Yoshio; Yonezawa, Masato; Yamasaki, Yuzo; Nagao, Michinobu; Yamanouchi, Torahiko; Yabuuchi, Hidetake; Nakamura, Katsumasa; Nakashima, Torahiko; Honda, Hiroshi

2016-02-01

To evaluate the frequency and the predictive factor of each feeding artery on intra-arterial infusion chemotherapy (IAIC) in primary tongue cancer. We retrospectively evaluated 20 patients who received IAIC for primary tongue cancer. The main and accompanying feeding arteries were identified on super-selective angiography of the branches of the external carotid artery. Tumor diameter, and extension to the contralateral side, tongue extrinsic muscles (TEMs), and lateral mesopharyngeal wall were determined based on magnetic resonance imaging or computed tomography findings. The main feeding artery was the ipsilateral lingual artery (LA) in 15 of the 20 examined tumors and the contralateral LA in the other 5. Ten cancers had only one feeding artery, and multiple feeding arteries were detected in the remaining 10. Tumors >4 cm (n = 9), those with extension to the contralateral side (n = 13), and those with extension to TEMs (n = 15) were supplied by significantly larger numbers of feeding arteries compared to tumors without these features (P = 0.01, 0.049, and 0.02, respectively). The frequency of feeding from the contralateral LA was 64 % (9/14) and 17 % (1/6) in tumors with and without extension to the contralateral side, respectively. Feeding from a facial artery (FA) was not detected in tumors ≤4 cm, while 5 of the 9 (56 %) tumors >4 cm were supplied by a FA (P = 0.01). A careful search for feeding arteries is required, especially in large tumors with extension to the contralateral side or to TEMs.

Hemodynamics in Transplant Renal Artery Stenosis and its Alteration after Stent Implantation Based on a Patient-specific Computational Fluid Dynamics Model

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Hong-Yang; Liu, Long-Shan; Cao, Hai-Ming; Li, Jun; Deng, Rong-Hai; Fu, Qian; Zhang, Huan-Xi; Fei, Ji-Guang; Wang, Chang-Xi

2017-01-01

Background: Accumulating studies on computational fluid dynamics (CFD) support the involvement of hemodynamic factors in artery stenosis. Based on a patient-specific CFD model, the present study aimed to investigate the hemodynamic characteristics of transplant renal artery stenosis (TRAS) and its alteration after stent treatment. Methods: Computed tomography angiography (CTA) data of kidney transplant recipients in a single transplant center from April 2013 to November 2014 were reviewed. The three-dimensional geometry of transplant renal artery (TRA) was reconstructed from the qualified CTA images and categorized into three groups: the normal, stenotic, and stented groups. Hemodynamic parameters including pressure distribution, velocity, wall shear stress (WSS), and mass flow rate (MFR) were extracted. The data of hemodynamic parameters were expressed as median (interquartile range), and Mann–Whitney U-test was used for analysis. Results: Totally, 6 normal, 12 stenotic, and 6 stented TRAs were included in the analysis. TRAS presented nonuniform pressure distribution, adverse pressure gradient across stenosis throat, flow vortex, and a separation zone at downstream stenosis. Stenotic arteries had higher maximal velocity and maximal WSS (2.94 [2.14, 3.30] vs. 1.06 [0.89, 1.15] m/s, 256.5 [149.8, 349.4] vs. 41.7 [37.8, 45.3] Pa at end diastole, P = 0.001; 3.25 [2.67, 3.56] vs. 1.65 [1.18, 1.72] m/s, 281.3 [184.3, 364.7] vs. 65.8 [61.2, 71.9] Pa at peak systole, P = 0.001) and lower minimal WSS and MFRs (0.07 [0.03, 0.13] vs. 0.52 [0.45, 0.67] Pa, 1.5 [1.0, 3.0] vs. 11.0 [8.0, 11.3] g/s at end diastole, P = 0.001; 0.08 [0.03, 0.19] vs. 0.70 [0.60, 0.81] Pa, 2.0 [1.3, 3.3] vs. 16.5 [13.0, 20.3] g/s at peak systole, P = 0.001) as compared to normal arteries. Stent implantation ameliorated all the alterations of the above hemodynamic factors except low WSS. Conclusions: Hemodynamic factors were significantly changed in severe TRAS. Stent implantation can restore or

Hemodynamics in Transplant Renal Artery Stenosis and its Alteration after Stent Implantation Based on a Patient-specific Computational Fluid Dynamics Model.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Hong-Yang; Liu, Long-Shan; Cao, Hai-Ming; Li, Jun; Deng, Rong-Hai; Fu, Qian; Zhang, Huan-Xi; Fei, Ji-Guang; Wang, Chang-Xi

Accumulating studies on computational fluid dynamics (CFD) support the involvement of hemodynamic factors in artery stenosis. Based on a patient-specific CFD model, the present study aimed to investigate the hemodynamic characteristics of transplant renal artery stenosis (TRAS) and its alteration after stent treatment. Computed tomography angiography (CTA) data of kidney transplant recipients in a single transplant center from April 2013 to November 2014 were reviewed. The three-dimensional geometry of transplant renal artery (TRA) was reconstructed from the qualified CTA images and categorized into three groups: the normal, stenotic, and stented groups. Hemodynamic parameters including pressure distribution, velocity, wall shear stress (WSS), and mass flow rate (MFR) were extracted. The data of hemodynamic parameters were expressed as median (interquartile range), and Mann-Whitney U-test was used for analysis. Totally, 6 normal, 12 stenotic, and 6 stented TRAs were included in the analysis. TRAS presented nonuniform pressure distribution, adverse pressure gradient across stenosis throat, flow vortex, and a separation zone at downstream stenosis. Stenotic arteries had higher maximal velocity and maximal WSS (2.94 [2.14, 3.30] vs. 1.06 [0.89, 1.15] m/s, 256.5 [149.8, 349.4] vs. 41.7 [37.8, 45.3] Pa at end diastole, P= 0.001; 3.25 [2.67, 3.56] vs. 1.65 [1.18, 1.72] m/s, 281.3 [184.3, 364.7] vs. 65.8 [61.2, 71.9] Pa at peak systole, P= 0.001) and lower minimal WSS and MFRs (0.07 [0.03, 0.13] vs. 0.52 [0.45, 0.67] Pa, 1.5 [1.0, 3.0] vs. 11.0 [8.0, 11.3] g/s at end diastole, P= 0.001; 0.08 [0.03, 0.19] vs. 0.70 [0.60, 0.81] Pa, 2.0 [1.3, 3.3] vs. 16.5 [13.0, 20.3] g/s at peak systole, P= 0.001) as compared to normal arteries. Stent implantation ameliorated all the alterations of the above hemodynamic factors except low WSS. Hemodynamic factors were significantly changed in severe TRAS. Stent implantation can restore or ameliorate deleterious change of hemodynamic

Influence of Housing Wall Compliance on Shock Absorbers in the Context of Vehicle Dynamics

Science.gov (United States)

Pulvirenti, G.; Faria, C.

2017-10-01

Shock absorbers play a key role in vehicle dynamics. Researchers have spent significant effort in order to understand phenomena associated with this component, but there are still several issues to address, in part because new technology development and design trends continually lead to new challenges, among which weight reduction is crucial. For shock absorbers, weight reduction is related to the use of new materials (e.g. composite) or new design paradigms (e.g. more complex geometry, wall thickness, etc.). All of them are directly linked to wall compliance values higher than the actual ones. The present article proposes a first analysis of the phenomena introduced by a high wall compliance, through a modelling approach and various simulations in order to understand the vehicle behaviour changes. It is shown that high values of wall compliance lead to increased hysteresis in the force-velocity curve. However, comfort, handling and ride performances are not significantly affected by this designing parameter.

Numerical analysis of the effect of turbulence transition on the hemodynamic parameters in human coronary arteries.

Science.gov (United States)

Mahalingam, Arun; Gawandalkar, Udhav Ulhas; Kini, Girish; Buradi, Abdulrajak; Araki, Tadashi; Ikeda, Nobutaka; Nicolaides, Andrew; Laird, John R; Saba, Luca; Suri, Jasjit S

2016-06-01

Local hemodynamics plays an important role in atherogenesis and the progression of coronary atherosclerosis disease (CAD). The primary biological effect due to blood turbulence is the change in wall shear stress (WSS) on the endothelial cell membrane, while the local oscillatory nature of the blood flow affects the physiological changes in the coronary artery. In coronary arteries, the blood flow Reynolds number ranges from few tens to several hundreds and hence it is generally assumed to be laminar while calculating the WSS calculations. However, the pulsatile blood flow through coronary arteries under stenotic condition could result in transition from laminar to turbulent flow condition. In the present work, the onset of turbulent transition during pulsatile flow through coronary arteries for varying degree of stenosis (i.e., 0%, 30%, 50% and 70%) is quantitatively analyzed by calculating the turbulent parameters distal to the stenosis. Also, the effect of turbulence transition on hemodynamic parameters such as WSS and oscillatory shear index (OSI) for varying degree of stenosis is quantified. The validated transitional shear stress transport (SST) k-ω model used in the present investigation is the best suited Reynolds averaged Navier-Stokes turbulence model to capture the turbulent transition. The arterial wall is assumed to be rigid and the dynamic curvature effect due to myocardial contraction on the blood flow has been neglected. Our observations shows that for stenosis 50% and above, the WSSavg, WSSmax and OSI calculated using turbulence model deviates from laminar by more than 10% and the flow disturbances seems to significantly increase only after 70% stenosis. Our model shows reliability and completely validated. Blood flow through stenosed coronary arteries seems to be turbulent in nature for area stenosis above 70% and the transition to turbulent flow begins from 50% stenosis.

Microfocal X-ray computed tomography post-processing operations for optimizing reconstruction volumes of stented arteries during 3D computational fluid dynamics modeling.

Science.gov (United States)

Ladisa, John F; Olson, Lars E; Ropella, Kristina M; Molthen, Robert C; Haworth, Steven T; Kersten, Judy R; Warltier, David C; Pagel, Paul S

2005-08-01

Restenosis caused by neointimal hyperplasia (NH) remains an important clinical problem after stent implantation. Restenosis varies with stent geometry, and idealized computational fluid dynamics (CFD) models have indicated that geometric properties of the implanted stent may differentially influence NH. However, 3D studies capturing the in vivo flow domain within stented vessels have not been conducted at a resolution sufficient to detect subtle alterations in vascular geometry caused by the stent and the subsequent temporal development of NH. We present the details and limitations of a series of post-processing operations used in conjunction with microfocal X-ray CT imaging and reconstruction to generate geometrically accurate flow domains within the localized region of a stent several weeks after implantation. Microfocal X-ray CT reconstruction volumes were subjected to an automated program to perform arterial thresholding, spatial orientation, and surface smoothing of stented and unstented rabbit iliac arteries several weeks after antegrade implantation. A transfer function was obtained for the current post-processing methodology containing reconstructed 16 mm stents implanted into rabbit iliac arteries for up to 21 days after implantation and resolved at circumferential and axial resolutions of 32 and 50 microm, respectively. The results indicate that the techniques presented are sufficient to resolve distributions of WSS with 80% accuracy in segments containing 16 surface perturbations over a 16 mm stented region. These methods will be used to test the hypothesis that reductions in normalized wall shear stress (WSS) and increases in the spatial disparity of WSS immediately after stent implantation may spatially correlate with the temporal development of NH within the stented region.

Reversible wall motion abnormality on adenosine stress/rest thallium-201 gated myocardial SPECT is an independent predictor of coronary artery disease

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Park, Eun Kyung; Lee, Won Woo; So, Young; Eo, Jae Seon; Lee, Dong Soo; Chung, June Key; Lee, Myung Chul; Kim, Sang Eun; Kim, Cheol Ho; Lee, Sang Woo

2004-01-01

As early as 10 minutes after adenosine stress, immediate post-stress wall motion (ipsWM) can be evaluated on adenosine stress/rest TI-201 gated SPECT (gSPECT). To widen application of TI-201 in gated SPECT, we investigated image quality, LV parameters (EF, EDV, and ESV) reproducibility, and diagnostic competency of gSPECT regarding ipsWM evaluation Myocardial perfusion and wall motion were evaluated by 5-point scoring system in 20-segment model. Image quality was assessed using weighted Kappa (Kw) for inter-and intra-observer agreements of wall motion scores (n=49). Reproducibility was examined through repeated acquisition (n=31). Diagnostic competency was evaluated versus coronary angiography (CAG) and multivariate logistic regression analysis was performed to identify significant predictors of coronary artery disease (CAD) among stress abnormal perfusion (SSSp), stress abnormal wall motion (SSSwm), and reversible abnormal wall motion (SDSwm) (n=60). Kw for ipsWM was significantly better than that for rest regarding inter- (0.717 vs 0.489) and intra-observer agreements (0.792 vs 0.688) (p<0.05). 2SD for ipsWM was smaller than that for rest at EF (8.6% vs 10.7%) and ESV (6.0ml vs 8.4ml). Sensitivities of SSSp, SSSwm, and SDSwm were 63.3% (19/30), 63.3% (19/30), and 43.3% (13/30) and specificities 83.3% (25/30), 83.3% (25/30), and 86.7% (26/30), respectively. By multivariate analysis, SSSp (p=0.013) and SDSwm (p=0.039) remained significant predictors. Additionally, SSSwm or SDSwm could find undetected CAD in 54.5% (6/11) of patients with normal perfusion. TI-201 can be successfully applied to gated SPECT for ipsWM evaluation. Moreover, reversible wall motion abnormality on gSPECT is an independent predictor of significant CAD

A model for near-wall dynamics in turbulent Rayleigh Bénard convection

Science.gov (United States)

Theerthan, S. Ananda; Arakeri, Jaywant H.

1998-10-01

Experiments indicate that turbulent free convection over a horizontal surface (e.g. Rayleigh Bénard convection) consists of essentially line plumes near the walls, at least for moderately high Rayleigh numbers. Based on this evidence, we propose here a two-dimensional model for near-wall dynamics in Rayleigh Bénard convection and in general for convection over heated horizontal surfaces. The model proposes a periodic array of steady laminar two-dimensional plumes. A plume is fed on either side by boundary layers on the wall. The results from the model are obtained in two ways. One of the methods uses the similarity solution of Rotem & Classen (1969) for the boundary layer and the similarity solution of Fuji (1963) for the plume. We have derived expressions for mean temperature and temperature and velocity fluctuations near the wall. In the second approach, we compute the two-dimensional flow field in a two-dimensional rectangular open cavity. The number of plumes in the cavity depends on the length of the cavity. The plume spacing is determined from the critical length at which the number of plumes increases by one. The results for average plume spacing and the distribution of r.m.s. temperature and velocity fluctuations are shown to be in acceptable agreement with experimental results.

Pea Border Cell Maturation and Release Involve Complex Cell Wall Structural Dynamics.

Science.gov (United States)

Mravec, Jozef; Guo, Xiaoyuan; Hansen, Aleksander Riise; Schückel, Julia; Kračun, Stjepan Krešimir; Mikkelsen, Maria Dalgaard; Mouille, Grégory; Johansen, Ida Elisabeth; Ulvskov, Peter; Domozych, David S; Willats, William George Tycho

2017-06-01

The adhesion of plant cells is vital for support and protection of the plant body and is maintained by a variety of molecular associations between cell wall components. In some specialized cases, though, plant cells are programmed to detach, and root cap-derived border cells are examples of this. Border cells (in some species known as border-like cells) provide an expendable barrier between roots and the environment. Their maturation and release is an important but poorly characterized cell separation event. To gain a deeper insight into the complex cellular dynamics underlying this process, we undertook a systematic, detailed analysis of pea ( Pisum sativum ) root tip cell walls. Our study included immunocarbohydrate microarray profiling, monosaccharide composition determination, Fourier-transformed infrared microspectroscopy, quantitative reverse transcription-PCR of cell wall biosynthetic genes, analysis of hydrolytic activities, transmission electron microscopy, and immunolocalization of cell wall components. Using this integrated glycobiology approach, we identified multiple novel modes of cell wall structural and compositional rearrangement during root cap growth and the release of border cells. Our findings provide a new level of detail about border cell maturation and enable us to develop a model of the separation process. We propose that loss of adhesion by the dissolution of homogalacturonan in the middle lamellae is augmented by an active biophysical process of cell curvature driven by the polarized distribution of xyloglucan and extensin epitopes. © 2017 American Society of Plant Biologists. All Rights Reserved.

Diagnosis of bronchiectasis and airway wall thickening in children with cystic fibrosis. Objective airway-artery quantification

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kuo, Wieying; Tiddens, Harm A.W.M. [Erasmus MC - Sophia Children' s Hospital, Department of Pediatric Pulmonology and Allergology, Rotterdam (Netherlands); Erasmus MC, Department of Radiology, Rotterdam (Netherlands); Bruijne, Marleen de [Erasmus MC, Biomedical Imaging Group Rotterdam, Departments of Medical Informatics and Radiology, Rotterdam (Netherlands); University of Copenhagen, Department of Computer Science, Copenhagen (Denmark); Petersen, Jens [University of Copenhagen, Department of Computer Science, Copenhagen (Denmark); Nasserinejad, Kazem [Erasmus MC Cancer Institute, HOVON Data Center, Clinical Trial Center, Rotterdam (Netherlands); Erasmus MC, Department of Biostatistics, Rotterdam (Netherlands); Ozturk, Hadiye [Erasmus MC - Sophia Children' s Hospital, Department of Pediatric Pulmonology and Allergology, Rotterdam (Netherlands); Chen, Yong [General Hospital of Ningxia Medical University, Department of Radiology, Yinchuan (China); Perez-Rovira, Adria [Erasmus MC - Sophia Children' s Hospital, Department of Pediatric Pulmonology and Allergology, Rotterdam (Netherlands); Erasmus MC, Biomedical Imaging Group Rotterdam, Departments of Medical Informatics and Radiology, Rotterdam (Netherlands)

2017-11-15

To quantify airway and artery (AA)-dimensions in cystic fibrosis (CF) and control patients for objective CT diagnosis of bronchiectasis and airway wall thickness (AWT). Spirometer-guided inspiratory and expiratory CTs of 11 CF and 12 control patients were collected retrospectively. Airway pathways were annotated semi-automatically to reconstruct three-dimensional bronchial trees. All visible AA-pairs were measured perpendicular to the airway axis. Inner, outer and AWT (outer-inner) diameter were divided by the adjacent artery diameter to compute A{sub in}A-, A{sub out}A- and A{sub WT}A-ratios. AA-ratios were predicted using mixed-effects models including disease status, lung volume, gender, height and age as covariates. Demographics did not differ significantly between cohorts. Mean AA-pairs CF: 299 inspiratory; 82 expiratory. Controls: 131 inspiratory; 58 expiratory. All ratios were significantly larger in inspiratory compared to expiratory CTs for both groups (p<0.001). A{sub out}A- and A{sub WT}A-ratios were larger in CF than in controls, independent of lung volume (p<0.01). Difference of A{sub out}A- and A{sub WT}A-ratios between patients with CF and controls increased significantly for every following airway generation (p<0.001). Diagnosis of bronchiectasis is highly dependent on lung volume and more reliably diagnosed using outer airway diameter. Difference in bronchiectasis and AWT severity between the two cohorts increased with each airway generation. (orig.)

Neovascularization in Vertebral Artery Atheroma-A Dynamic Contrast-Enhanced Magnetic Resonance Imaging-Based Comparative Study in Patients with Symptomatic and Asymptomatic Carotid Artery Disease.

Science.gov (United States)

Usman, Ammara; Yuan, Jianmin; Patterson, Andrew J; Graves, Martin J; Varty, Kevin; Sadat, Umar; Gillard, Jonathan H

2018-05-24

Atherosclerosis is a systemic inflammatory disease intertwined with neovascularization. Dynamic contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (DCE-MRI) enables the assessment of plaque neovascularization. This study aimed to explore the systemic nature of atherosclerosis by assessing difference in severity of neovascularization as quantified by DCE-MRI of vertebral arteries (VAs) between patients with symptomatic and asymptomatic carotid artery disease. Ten consecutive patients with asymptomatic VA stenosis and concomitant symptomatic carotid artery disease (group 1) and 10 consecutive patients with asymptomatic VA stenosis and concomitant asymptomatic carotid artery disease (group 2) underwent 3-dimensional DCE-MRI of their cervical segment of VAs. A previously validated pharmacokinetic modeling approach was used for DCE-MRI analysis. K trans was calculated in the adventitia and plaque as a measure of neovessel permeability. Both patient groups were comparable for demographics and comorbidities. Mean luminal stenosis was comparable for both groups (54.4% versus 52.27%, P = .32). Group 1 had higher adventitial K trans and plaque K trans (.08 ± .01 min -1 , .07 ± .01 min -1 ) compared with Group 2 (.06 ± .01 min -1 , .06 ± .01 min -1 ) (P = .004 and .03, respectively). Good correlation was present among the two image analysts (intraclass correlation coefficient = .78). Vertebral Artery atheroma of patients with symptomatic carotid artery disease had increased neovessel permeability compared with the patients with asymptomatic carotid artery disease. These findings are consistent with the hypothesis that atherosclerosis is a systemic inflammatory disease. The VA atherosclerosis is likely to have increased severity of neovascularization if another arterial territory is symptomatic in the same patient cohort. Copyright © 2018 National Stroke Association. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Clinical significance of exercise-induced left ventricular wall motion abnormality occurring at a low heart rate

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kimchi, A.; Rozanski, A.; Fletcher, C.; Maddahi, J.; Swan, H.J.; Berman, D.S.

1987-01-01

We studied the relationship between the heart rate at the time of onset of exercise-induced wall motion abnormality and the severity of coronary artery disease in 89 patients who underwent exercise equilibrium radionuclide ventriculography as part of their evaluation for coronary artery disease. Segmental wall motion was scored with a five-point system (3 = normal; -1 = dyskinesis); a decrease of one score defined the onset of wall motion abnormality. The onset of wall motion abnormality at less than or equal to 70% of maximal predicted heart rate had 100% predictive accuracy for coronary artery disease and higher sensitivity than the onset of ischemic ST segment depression at similar heart rate during exercise: 36% (25 of 69 patients with coronary disease) vs 19% (13 of 69 patients), p = 0.01. Wall motion abnormality occurring at less than or equal to 70% of maximal predicted heart rate was present in 49% of patients (23 of 47) with critical stenosis (greater than or equal to 90% luminal diameter narrowing), and in only 5% of patients (2 of 42) without such severe stenosis, p less than 0.001. The sensitivity of exercise-induced wall motion abnormality occurring at a low heart rate for the presence of severe coronary artery disease was similar to that of a deterioration in wall motion by more than two scores during exercise (49% vs 53%) or an absolute decrease of greater than or equal to 5% in exercise left ventricular ejection fraction (49% vs 45%)

Flow Characteristics Near to Stent Strut Configurations on Femoropopliteal Artery

Science.gov (United States)

Paisal, Muhammad Sufyan Amir; Fadhil Syed Adnan, Syed; Taib, Ishkrizat; Ismail, Al Emran; Kamil Abdullah, Mohammad; Nordin, Normayati; Seri, Suzairin Md; Darlis, Nofrizalidris

2017-08-01

Femoropopiteal artery stenting is a common procedure suggested by medical expert especially for patient who is diagnosed with severe stenosis. Many researchers reported that the growth of stenosis is significantly related to the geometry of stent strut configuration. The different shapes of stent geometry are presenting the different flow pattern and re-circulation in stented femoropopliteal artery. The blood flow characteristics near to the stent geometry are predicted for the possibility of thrombosis and atherosclerosis to be formed as well as increase the growth of stenosis. Thus, this study aims to determine the flow characteristic near to stent strut configuration based on different hemodynamic parameters. Three dimensional models of stent and simplified femoropopliteal artery are modelled using computer aided design (CAD) software. Three different models of stent shapes; hexagon, circle and rectangle are simulated using computational fluid dynamic (CFD) method. Then, parametric study is implemented to predict the performance of stent due to hemodynamic differences. The hemodynamic parameters considered are pressure, velocity, low wall shear stress (WSSlow) and wall shear stress (WSS). From the observation, flow re-circulation has been formed for all simulated stent models which the proximal region shown the severe vortices. However, rectangular shape of stent strut (Type P3) shows the lowest WSSlow and the highest WSS between the range of 4 dyne/cm2 and 70 dyne/cm2. Stent Type P3 also shows the best hemodynamic stent performance as compare to others. In conclusion, Type P3 has a favourable result in hemodynamic stent performance that predicted less probability of thrombosis and atherosclerosis to be formed as well as reduces the growth of restenosis.

Continuous estimates of dynamic cerebral autoregulation: influence of non-invasive arterial blood pressure measurements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Panerai, R B; Smith, S M; Rathbone, W E; Samani, N J; Sammons, E L; Bentley, S; Potter, J F

2008-01-01

Temporal variability of parameters which describe dynamic cerebral autoregulation (CA), usually quantified by the short-term relationship between arterial blood pressure (BP) and cerebral blood flow velocity (CBFV), could result from continuous adjustments in physiological regulatory mechanisms or could be the result of artefacts in methods of measurement, such as the use of non-invasive measurements of BP in the finger. In 27 subjects (61 ± 11 years old) undergoing coronary artery angioplasty, BP was continuously recorded at rest with the Finapres device and in the ascending aorta (Millar catheter, BP AO ), together with bilateral transcranial Doppler ultrasound in the middle cerebral artery, surface ECG and transcutaneous CO 2 . Dynamic CA was expressed by the autoregulation index (ARI), ranging from 0 (absence of CA) to 9 (best CA). Time-varying, continuous estimates of ARI (ARI(t)) were obtained with an autoregressive moving-average (ARMA) model applied to a 60 s sliding data window. No significant differences were observed in the accuracy and precision of ARI(t) between estimates derived from the Finapres and BP AO . Highly significant correlations were obtained between ARI(t) estimates from the right and left middle cerebral artery (MCA) (Finapres r = 0.60 ± 0.20; BP AO r = 0.56 ± 0.22) and also between the ARI(t) estimates from the Finapres and BP AO (right MCA r = 0.70 ± 0.22; left MCA r = 0.74 ± 0.22). Surrogate data showed that ARI(t) was highly sensitive to the presence of noise in the CBFV signal, with both the bias and dispersion of estimates increasing for lower values of ARI(t). This effect could explain the sudden drops of ARI(t) to zero as reported previously. Simulated sudden changes in ARI(t) can be detected by the Finapres, but the bias and variability of estimates also increase for lower values of ARI. In summary, the Finapres does not distort time-varying estimates of dynamic CA obtained with a sliding window combined with an ARMA model

Uncertainty quantification and sensitivity analysis of an arterial wall mechanics model for evaluation of vascular drug therapies.

Science.gov (United States)

Heusinkveld, Maarten H G; Quicken, Sjeng; Holtackers, Robert J; Huberts, Wouter; Reesink, Koen D; Delhaas, Tammo; Spronck, Bart

2018-02-01

Quantification of the uncertainty in constitutive model predictions describing arterial wall mechanics is vital towards non-invasive assessment of vascular drug therapies. Therefore, we perform uncertainty quantification to determine uncertainty in mechanical characteristics describing the vessel wall response upon loading. Furthermore, a global variance-based sensitivity analysis is performed to pinpoint measurements that are most rewarding to be measured more precisely. We used previously published carotid diameter-pressure and intima-media thickness (IMT) data (measured in triplicate), and Holzapfel-Gasser-Ogden models. A virtual data set containing 5000 diastolic and systolic diameter-pressure points, and IMT values was generated by adding measurement error to the average of the measured data. The model was fitted to single-exponential curves calculated from the data, obtaining distributions of constitutive parameters and constituent load bearing parameters. Additionally, we (1) simulated vascular drug treatment to assess the relevance of model uncertainty and (2) evaluated how increasing the number of measurement repetitions influences model uncertainty. We found substantial uncertainty in constitutive parameters. Simulating vascular drug treatment predicted a 6% point reduction in collagen load bearing ([Formula: see text]), approximately 50% of its uncertainty. Sensitivity analysis indicated that the uncertainty in [Formula: see text] was primarily caused by noise in distension and IMT measurements. Spread in [Formula: see text] could be decreased by 50% when increasing the number of measurement repetitions from 3 to 10. Model uncertainty, notably that in [Formula: see text], could conceal effects of vascular drug therapy. However, this uncertainty could be reduced by increasing the number of measurement repetitions of distension and wall thickness measurements used for model parameterisation.

The development and optimisation of 3D black-blood R2* mapping of the carotid artery wall.

Science.gov (United States)

Yuan, Jianmin; Graves, Martin J; Patterson, Andrew J; Priest, Andrew N; Ruetten, Pascal P R; Usman, Ammara; Gillard, Jonathan H

2017-12-01

To develop and optimise a 3D black-blood R 2 * mapping sequence for imaging the carotid artery wall, using optimal blood suppression and k-space view ordering. Two different blood suppression preparation methods were used; Delay Alternating with Nutation for Tailored Excitation (DANTE) and improved Motion Sensitive Driven Equilibrium (iMSDE) were each combined with a three-dimensional (3D) multi-echo Fast Spoiled GRadient echo (ME-FSPGR) readout. Three different k-space view-order designs: Radial Fan-beam Encoding Ordering (RFEO), Distance-Determined Encoding Ordering (DDEO) and Centric Phase Encoding Order (CPEO) were investigated. The sequences were evaluated through Bloch simulation and in a cohort of twenty volunteers. The vessel wall Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR), Contrast-to-Noise Ratio (CNR) and R 2 *, and the sternocleidomastoid muscle R 2 * were measured and compared. Different numbers of acquisitions-per-shot (APS) were evaluated to further optimise the effectiveness of blood suppression. All sequences resulted in comparable R 2 * measurements to a conventional, i.e. non-blood suppressed sequence in the sternocleidomastoid muscle of the volunteers. Both Bloch simulations and volunteer data showed that DANTE has a higher signal intensity and results in a higher image SNR than iMSDE. Blood suppression efficiency was not significantly different when using different k-space view orders. Smaller APS achieved better blood suppression. The use of blood-suppression preparation methods does not affect the measurement of R 2 *. DANTE prepared ME-FSPGR sequence with a small number of acquisitions-per-shot can provide high quality black-blood R 2 * measurements of the carotid vessel wall. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Chest pain in patients with arterial hypertension, angiographically normal coronary arteries and stiff aorta: the aortic pain syndrome.

Science.gov (United States)

Stakos, Dimitrios A; Tziakas, Dimitrios N; Chalikias, George; Mitrousi, Konstantina; Tsigalou, Christina; Boudoulas, Harisios

2013-01-01

Arterial hypertension is often associated with a stiff aorta as a result of collagen accumulation in the aortic wall and may produce chest pain. In the present study, possible interrelationships between aortic function, collagen turnover and exercise-induced chest pain in patients with arterial hypertension and angiographically normal coronary arteries were investigated. Ninety-seven patients with arterial hypertension, angiographically normal coronary arteries and no evidence of myocardial ischemia on nuclear cardiac imaging during exercise test were studied. Of these, 43 developed chest pain during exercise (chest pain group) while 54 did not (no chest pain group). Carotid femoral pulse-wave velocity (PWVc-f) was used to assess the elastic properties of the aorta. Amino-terminal pro-peptides of pro-collagen type I, (PINP, reflecting collagen synthesis), serum telopeptides of collagen type I (CITP, reflecting collagen degradation), pro-metalloproteinase 1 (ProMMP-1), and tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase 1 (TIMP-1, related to collagen turnover) were measured in plasma by immunoassay. The chest pain group had higher PWVc-f, higher and /CITP ratio, and lower proMMP-1/ TIMP-1 ratio compared to the no chest pain group. PWVc-f (t=2.53, p=0.02) and PINP (t=2.42, p=0.02) were independently associated with the presence of chest pain in multiple regression analysis. Patients with arterial hypertension, exercise-induced chest pain and angiographically normal coronary arteries, without evidence of exercise-induced myocardial ischemia, had a stiffer aorta compared to those without chest pain. Alterations in collagen type I turnover that favor collagen accumulation in the aortic wall may contribute to aortic stiffening and chest pain in these patients.

Arterial endothelial function measurement method and apparatus

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Maltz, Jonathan S; Budinger, Thomas F

2014-03-04

A "relaxoscope" (100) detects the degree of arterial endothelial function. Impairment of arterial endothelial function is an early event in atherosclerosis and correlates with the major risk factors for cardiovascular disease. An artery (115), such as the brachial artery (BA) is measured for diameter before and after several minutes of either vasoconstriction or vasorelaxation. The change in arterial diameter is a measure of flow-mediated vasomodification (FMVM). The relaxoscope induces an artificial pulse (128) at a superficial radial artery (115) via a linear actuator (120). An ultrasonic Doppler stethoscope (130) detects this pulse 10-20 cm proximal to the point of pulse induction (125). The delay between pulse application and detection provides the pulse transit time (PTT). By measuring PTT before (160) and after arterial diameter change (170), FMVM may be measured based on the changes in PTT caused by changes in vessel caliber, smooth muscle tone and wall thickness.

Individual common carotid artery wall layer dimensions, but not carotid intima-media thickness, indicate increased cardiovascular risk in women with preeclampsia: an investigation using noninvasive high-frequency ultrasound.

Science.gov (United States)

Akhter, Tansim; Wikström, Anna-Karin; Larsson, Marita; Naessen, Tord

2013-09-01

Preeclampsia (PE) is associated with increased risk of cardiovascular disease later in life. Ultrasound assessment of the common carotid artery intima-media thickness (IMT) during or after PE has not indicated any increased cardiovascular risk. We used high-frequency ultrasound (22 MHz) to estimate the individual common carotid artery IMTs in 55 women at PE diagnosis and in 64 women with normal pregnancies at a similar stage. All were re-examined about 1 year postpartum. A thick intima, thin media, and high intima/media (I/M) ratio are signs of a less healthy artery wall. PE was associated with a significantly thicker mean common carotid artery intima, thinner media, and higher I/M ratio than in normal pregnancy (mean I/M difference, 0.21; 95% confidence interval, 0.17-0.25; Pwomen with PE were negatively affected during pregnancy and 1 year postpartum compared with women with normal pregnancies, indicating increased cardiovascular risk. Estimation of intima thickness and I/M ratio seem preferable to estimation of common carotid artery IMT in imaging cardiovascular risk in PE. Results from this pilot study warrant further confirmation.

The conundrum of arterial stiffness, elevated blood pressure, and aging.

Science.gov (United States)

AlGhatrif, Majd; Lakatta, Edward G

2015-02-01

Isolated systolic hypertension is a major health burden that is expanding with the aging of our population. There is evidence that central arterial stiffness contributes to the rise in systolic blood pressure (SBP); at the same time, central arterial stiffening is accelerated in patients with increased SBP. This bidirectional relationship created a controversy in the field on whether arterial stiffness leads to hypertension or vice versa. Given the profound interdependency of arterial stiffness and blood pressure, this question seems intrinsically challenging, or probably naïve. The aorta's function of dampening the pulsatile flow generated by the left ventricle is optimal within a physiological range of distending pressure that secures the required distal flow, keeps the aorta in an optimal mechanical conformation, and minimizes cardiac work. This homeostasis is disturbed by age-associated, minute alterations in aortic hemodynamic and mechanical properties that induce short- and long-term alterations in each other. Hence, it is impossible to detect an "initial insult" at an epidemiological level. Earlier manifestations of these alterations are observed in young adulthood with a sharp decline in aortic strain and distensibility accompanied by an increase in diastolic blood pressure. Subsequently, aortic mechanical reserve is exhausted, and aortic remodeling with wall stiffening and dilatation ensue. These two phenomena affect pulse pressure in opposite directions and different magnitudes. With early remodeling, there is an increase in pulse pressure, due to the dominance of arterial wall stiffness, which in turn accelerates aortic wall stiffness and dilation. With advanced remodeling, which appears to be greater in men, the effect of diameter becomes more pronounced and partially offsets the effect of wall stiffness leading to plateauing in pulse pressure in men and slower increase in pulse pressure (PP) than that of wall stiffness in women. The complex nature of

Heterogeneity and weak coupling may explain the synchronization characteristics of cells in the arterial wall

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jacobsen, Jens Christian Brings; Aalkjær, Christian; Matchkov, Vladimir

2008-01-01

development of force known as vasomotion. We present experimental data showing a considerable heterogeneity in cellular calcium dynamics in the vascular wall. In stimulated vessels, some SMCs remain quiescent, whereas others display waves of variable frequency. At the onset of vasomotion, all SMCs...... are enrolled into synchronized oscillation.Simulations of coupled SMCs show that the experimentally observed cellular recruitment, the presence of quiescent cells and the variation in oscillation frequency may arise if the cell population is phenotypically heterogeneous. In this case, quiescent cells can...

Improving the Outcome of Vein Grafts: Should Vascular Surgeons Turn Veins into Arteries?

OpenAIRE

Isaji, Toshihiko; Hashimoto, Takuya; Yamamoto, Kota; Santana, Jeans M.; Yatsula, Bogdan; Hu, Haidi; Bai, Hualong; Jianming, Guo; Kudze, Tambudzai; Nishibe, Toshiya; Dardik, Alan

2017-01-01

Autogenous vein grafts remain the gold standard conduit for arterial bypass, particularly for the treatment of critical limb ischemia. Vein graft adaptation to the arterial environment, i.e., adequate dilation and wall thickening, contributes to the superior performance of vein grafts. However, abnormal venous wall remodeling with excessive neointimal hyperplasia commonly causes vein graft failure. Since the PREVENT trials failed to improve vein graft outcomes, new strategies focus on the ada...

Nanopore wall-liquid interaction under scope of molecular dynamics study: Review

Science.gov (United States)

Tsukanov, A. A.; Psakhie, S. G.

2017-12-01

The present review is devoted to the analysis of recent molecular dynamics based on the numerical studies of molecular aspects of solid-fluid interaction in nanoscale channels. Nanopore wall-liquid interaction plays the crucial role in such processes as gas separation, water desalination, liquids decontamination, hydrocarbons and water transport in nano-fractured geological formations. Molecular dynamics simulation is one of the most suitable tools to study molecular level effects occurred in such multicomponent systems. The nanopores are classified by their geometry to four groups: nanopore in nanosheet, nanotube-like pore, slit-shaped nanopore and soft-matter nanopore. The review is focused on the functionalized nanopores in boron nitride nanosheets as novel selective membranes and on the slit-shaped nanopores formed by minerals.

Sex differences in intracranial arterial bifurcations

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lindekleiv, Haakon M; Valen-Sendstad, Kristian; Morgan, Michael K

2010-01-01

. The female preponderance is usually explained by systemic factors (hormonal influences and intrinsic wall weakness); however, the uneven sex distribution of intracranial aneurysms suggests a possible physiologic factor-a local sex difference in the intracranial arteries....

Pulsatile spiral blood flow through arterial stenosis.

Science.gov (United States)

Linge, Fabian; Hye, Md Abdul; Paul, Manosh C

2014-11-01

Pulsatile spiral blood flow in a modelled three-dimensional arterial stenosis, with a 75% cross-sectional area reduction, is investigated by using numerical fluid dynamics. Two-equation k-ω model is used for the simulation of the transitional flow with Reynolds numbers 500 and 1000. It is found that the spiral component increases the static pressure in the vessel during the deceleration phase of the flow pulse. In addition, the spiral component reduces the turbulence intensity and wall shear stress found in the post-stenosis region of the vessel in the early stages of the flow pulse. Hence, the findings agree with the results of Stonebridge et al. (2004). In addition, the results of the effects of a spiral component on time-varying flow are presented and discussed along with the relevant pathological issues.

A computational fluid dynamics modeling study of guide walls for downstream fish passage

Science.gov (United States)

Mulligan, Kevin; Towler, Brett; Haro, Alexander J.; Ahlfeld, David P.

2017-01-01

A partial-depth, impermeable guidance structure (or guide wall) for downstream fish passage is typically constructed as a series of panels attached to a floating boom and anchored across a water body (e.g. river channel, reservoir, or power canal). The downstream terminus of the wall is generally located nearby to a fish bypass structure. If guidance is successful, the fish will avoid entrainment in a dangerous intake structure (i.e. turbine intakes) while passing from the headpond to the tailwater of a hydroelectric facility through a safer passage route (i.e. the bypass). The goal of this study is to determine the combination of guide wall design parameters that will most likely increase the chance of surface-oriented fish being successfully guided to the bypass. To evaluate the flow field immediately upstream of a guide wall, a parameterized computational fluid dynamics model of an idealized power canal was constructed in © ANSYS Fluent v 14.5 (ANSYS Inc., 2012). The design parameters investigated were the angle and depth of the guide wall and the average approach velocity in the power canal. Results call attention to the importance of the downward to sweeping flow ratio and demonstrate how a change in guide wall depth and angle can affect this important hydraulic cue to out-migrating fish. The key findings indicate that a guide wall set at a small angle (15° is the minimum in this study) and deep enough such that sweeping flow dominant conditions prevail within the expected vertical distribution of fish approaching the structure will produce hydraulic conditions that are more likely to result in effective passage.

Preoperative localization of endocrine pancreatic tumours by intra-arterial dynamic computed tomography

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ahlstroem, H.; Magnusson, A.; Grama, D.; Eriksson, B.; Oeberg, K.; Loerelius, L.E.; Akademiska Sjukhuset, Uppsala; Akademiska Sjukhuset, Uppsala

1990-01-01

Eleven patients with biochemically confirmed endocrine pancreatic tumours were examined with intra-arterial (i.a.) dynamic computed tomography (CT) and angiography preoperatively. Seven of the patients suffered from the multiple endocrine neoplasia type 1 (MEN-1) syndrome. All patients were operated upon and surgical palpation and ultrasound were the peroperative localization methods. Of the 33 tumours which were found at histopathologic analysis of the resected specimens in the 11 patients, 7 tumours in 7 patients were correctly localized by both i.a. dynamic CT and angiography. Six patients with MEN-1 syndrome had multiple tumours and this group of patients together had 28 tumours, of which 5 (18%) were localized preoperatively by both CT and angiography. I.a. dynamic CT, with the technique used by us, does not seem to improve the localization of endocrine pancreatic tumours, especially in the rare group of MEN-1 patients, as compared with angiography. (orig.)

Estimating the arterial input function from dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI data with compensation for flow enhancement (I): Theory, method, and phantom experiments

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Schie, Jeroen J. N.; Lavini, Cristina; van Vliet, Lucas J.; Vos, Frans M.

2017-01-01

The arterial input function (AIF) represents the time-dependent arterial contrast agent (CA) concentration that is used in pharmacokinetic modeling. To develop a novel method for estimating the AIF from dynamic contrast-enhanced (DCE-) MRI data, while compensating for flow enhancement. Signal

Structural modifications in the arterial wall during physiological aging and as a result of diabetes mellitus in a mouse model: are the changes comparable?

Science.gov (United States)

Prévost, G; Bulckaen, H; Gaxatte, C; Boulanger, E; Béraud, G; Creusy, C; Puisieux, F; Fontaine, P

2011-04-01

Vascular accelerated aging represents the major cause of morbidity and mortality in subjects with diabetes mellitus. In the present study, our aim was to compare premature functional and morphological changes in the arterial wall resulting from streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetes mellitus in mice over a short-term period with those that develop during physiological aging. The effect of aminoguanidine (AG) on the prevention of these alterations in the diabetic group was also analyzed. The vascular relaxation response to acetylcholine (ACh) in the mouse was tested in isolated segments of phenylephrine (Phe)-precontracted aorta at 2, 4 and 8 weeks (wk) of STZ-induced diabetes and compare to 12- and 84-wk-old mice. Aortic structural changes were investigated, and receptor for AGE (RAGE) aortic expression was quantified by western blot. Compared to the 12-wk control group (76 ± 5%), significant endothelium-dependant relaxation (EDR) impairment was found in the group of 12-wk-old mice, which underwent a 4-wk diabetes-inducing STZ treatment (12wk-4WD) (52 ± 4%; P aging preventive effect on the structural changes of the arterial wall. Our study compared EDR linked to physiological aging with that observed in the case of STZ-induced diabetes over a short-term period, and demonstrated the beneficial effect of AG. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.

Pressure drop and arterial compliance - Two arterial parameters in one measurement.

Science.gov (United States)

Rotman, Oren M; Zaretsky, Uri; Shitzer, Avraham; Einav, Shmuel

2017-01-04

Coronary artery pressure-drop and distensibility (compliance) are two major, seemingly unrelated, parameters in the cardiovascular clinical setting, which are indicative of coronary arteries patency and atherosclerosis severity. While pressure drop is related to flow, and therefore serves as a functional indicator of a stenosis severity, the arterial distensibility is indicative of the arterial stiffness, and hence the arterial wall composition. In the present study, we hypothesized that local pressure drops are dependent on the arterial distensibility, and hence can provide information on both indices. The clinical significance is that a single measurement of pressure drop could potentially provide both functional and bio-mechanical metrics of lesions, and thus assist in real-time decision making prior to stenting. The goal of the current study was to set the basis for understanding this relationship, and define the accuracy and sensitivity required from the pressure measurement system. The investigation was performed using numerical fluid-structure interaction (FSI) simulations, validated experimentally using our high accuracy differential pressure measurement system. Simplified silicone mock coronary arteries with zero to intermediate size stenoses were used, and various combinations of arterial distensibility, diameter, and flow rate were simulated. Results of hyperemic flow cases were also compared to fractional flow reserve (FFR). The results indicate the potential clinical superiority of a high accuracy pressure drop-based parameter over FFR, by: (i) being more lesion-specific, (ii) the possibility to circumvent the FFR dependency on pharmacologically-induced hyperemia, and, (iii) by providing both functional and biomechanical lesion-specific information. Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Prediction of improvement of myocardial wall motion after coronary artery bypass surgery using rest Tl-201/dipyridamole stress gated Tc-99m-MIBI/24 hour delay Tl-201 SPECT

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Dong Soo; Lee, Won Woo; Yeo, Jeong Yeo; Kim, Seok Ki; Kim, Ki Bong; Chung, June Key; Lee, Myung Chul

1998-01-01

Using rest Tl-201/ dipyridamole stress gated Tc-99m-MIBI/24 hour delay Tl-201 SPECT, we investigated the predictive values of the markers of the stress-rest reversibility (Rev), Tl-201 rest perfusion (Rest), Tl-201 24 hour redistribution (Del) and Tc-99m-MIBI gated systolic thickening (Thk) for wall motion improvement after coronary artery bypass surgery. In 39 patients (M:F=34:5, age 58±8), preoperative and postoperative (3 months) SPECT were compared. 24 hour delayed SPECT was done in 16 patients having perfusion defects at rest. Perfusion or wall motion was scored from 0 to 3 (0: normal to 3: defect or dyskinesia). Wall motion was abnormal in 142 segments among 585 segments of 99 artery territories which were surgically revascularized. After bypass surgery, ejection fraction increased from 37.8±9.0% to 45.5±12.3% in 22 patients who had decreased ejectin fraction preoperatively. Wall motion improved in 103 (72.5%) segments among 142 dysfunctional segments. Positive predictive values (PPV) of Rev, Rest, Del, and Thk were 83%, 76%, 43%, and 69% respectively. Negative predictive values (NPV) of Rev, Rest, Del, and Thk were 48%, 44%, 58%, and 21%, respectively. Rest/gated stress/delay SPECT had PPV of 74% and NPV of 46%. Through univariate logistic regression analysis revealed Rev( p=0.0008) and Rest (p=0.024) as significant predictors, stepwise multivariate test found Rev as the only good predictor (p=0.0008). Among independent predictors obtained by rest Tl-201/stress gated Tc-99m-MIBI/delayed Tl-201 myocardial SPECT for wall motion improvement after bypass surgery, stress-rest reversibility was the single most useful predictor

A dynamical system that describes vein graft adaptation and failure.

Science.gov (United States)

Garbey, Marc; Berceli, Scott A

2013-11-07

Adaptation of vein bypass grafts to the mechanical stresses imposed by the arterial circulation is thought to be the primary determinant for lesion development, yet an understanding of how the various forces dictate local wall remodeling is lacking. We develop a dynamical system that summarizes the complex interplay between the mechanical environment and cell/matrix kinetics, ultimately dictating changes in the vein graft architecture. Based on a systematic mapping of the parameter space, three general remodeling response patterns are observed: (1) shear stabilized intimal thickening, (2) tension induced wall thinning and lumen expansion, and (3) tension stabilized wall thickening. Notable is our observation that the integration of multiple feedback mechanisms leads to a variety of non-linear responses that would be unanticipated by an analysis of each system component independently. This dynamic analysis supports the clinical observation that the majority of vein grafts proceed along an adaptive trajectory, where grafts dilate and mildly thicken in response to the increased tension and shear, but a small portion of the grafts demonstrate a maladaptive phenotype, where progressive inward remodeling and accentuated wall thickening lead to graft failure. © 2013 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Biofiltration of airborne VOCs with green wall systems-Microbial and chemical dynamics.

Science.gov (United States)

Mikkonen, A; Li, T; Vesala, M; Saarenheimo, J; Ahonen, V; Kärenlampi, S; Blande, J D; Tiirola, M; Tervahauta, A

2018-05-06

Botanical air filtration is a promising technology for reducing indoor air contaminants, but the underlying mechanisms need better understanding. Here, we made a set of chamber fumigation experiments of up to 16 weeks of duration, to study the filtration efficiencies for seven volatile organic compounds (VOCs; decane, toluene, 2-ethylhexanol, α-pinene, octane, benzene, and xylene) and to monitor microbial dynamics in simulated green wall systems. Biofiltration functioned on sub-ppm VOC levels without concentration-dependence. Airflow through the growth medium was needed for efficient removal of chemically diverse VOCs, and the use of optimized commercial growth medium further improved the efficiency compared with soil and Leca granules. Experimental green wall simulations using these components were immediately effective, indicating that initial VOC removal was largely abiotic. Golden pothos plants had a small additional positive impact on VOC filtration and bacterial diversity in the green wall system. Proteobacteria dominated the microbiota of rhizosphere and irrigation water. Airborne VOCs shaped the microbial communities, enriching potential VOC-utilizing bacteria (especially Nevskiaceae and Patulibacteraceae) in the irrigation water, where much of the VOC degradation capacity of the biofiltration systems resided. These results clearly show the benefits of active air circulation and optimized growth media in modern green wall systems. © 2018 John Wiley & Sons A/S. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Sphenopalatine artery ligation: technical note.

Science.gov (United States)

Pothier, David D; Mackeith, Samuel; Youngs, Robin

2005-10-01

Epistaxis is a common problem. Most patients presenting to hospital will stop bleeding with simple first-aid measures or with nasal packing. Those who do not stop will usually require surgical management. For persistent posterior epistaxis, the sphenopalatine artery may be ligated as the artery leaves the sphenopalatine foramen to enter the nasal mucosa of the lateral wall of the nose. This may be performed endoscopically. We describe the anatomy of the area and the surgical technique. We also present a brief review of the literature on this technique.

Influence of Formalin Fixation Prior to in vitro Ultrasound Examination of Porcine Arteries

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Wilhjelm, Jens E.; Vogt, Katja; Jespersen, Søren Kragh

1996-01-01

This paper reports on an investigation of the influence on the echosignal from porcine artery walls due to two different formalin fixationprocedures. The lumen diameter, the wall thickness and the mean echogenicitywere calculated. In general, the fixation resulted in a more rigid wall. Whileconve...

Autopsy findings in carotid arterial rupture following radiotherapy of head and neck advanced carcinoma

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Satake, Bunsuke; Matsuura, Shizumu; Sakaino, Kouji; Maehara, Yasunobu

1989-01-01

The influence of radiotherapy in advanced head and neck cancer was investigated by autopsy of head and neck patients who had had carotid artery rupture. Twenty-five cases of head and neck cancer revealed carotid artery rupture among the 255 head and neck cases autopsied from 1972 to 1985. The rate of carotid artery rupture in hypopharyngeal cancer was 8/32 (25%); in oral cancer 8/55 (14.5%), and in other cancers 9/165 (5.4%). In localization of ruptured arteries there were 9 cases of common carotid artery, 14 cases of external carotid artery, one case of internal carotid artery, and one unknown. These cases were irradiated using more than 70 Gy. The following reasons for carotid artery rupture were suspected: 1. There was a tumor with deep ulceration and necrosis near the vessel. 2. The wall of the artery had radiation angitis. 3. The artery wall was necrotic because of invasion by the tumor. 4. Thrombosis developed with ensuant rupture of the artery. Radiotherapy for advanced cancer of the head and neck is necessary to control pain and as palliative treatment, but to avoid rupture of the carotid artery, pain clinic techniques and chemotherapy as palliative treatment for this kinds of terminal condition should also be considered. (author)

Response of Arterial Stiffness Four Weeks After Terminating Short-term Aerobic Exercise Training in a Sedentary Lifestyle.

Science.gov (United States)

Baykara, Murat; Demirel, Adnan; Yavuzatmaca, İhsan; Bilgen, Mehmet

2017-02-01

The purpose of this study was to investigate the response of arterial stiffness in individuals with a sedentary lifestyle at 4 weeks after terminating a 2-week aerobic exercise session. Arterial stiffness was evaluated in 38 participants before starting and after completing a prescribed aerobic exercise program and also at 4 weeks after returning back to their sedentary lifestyle. Parameters regarding arterial compliance, distensibility, wall stress, and the elastic modulus were estimated from the information gained from sonography on the dimensions of carotid and femoral arteries and a sphygmomanometer on the pulse pressure. Primary outcomes included whether short-term aerobic exercise reduced the heart rate, arterial pressure, and intima-media thickness and improved vascular biomechanics in physically inactive but otherwise healthy individuals. The benefits gained in arterial compliance and distensibility deteriorated with termination of exercise, but diastolic wall stress and the elastic modulus improved further. In individuals with sedentary lifestyles, short-term aerobic exercise has strong four-week residual benefits on diastolic wall stress and the elastic modulus, but the effects appear to be negligible on arterial stiffness and distensibility. © 2016 by the American Institute of Ultrasound in Medicine.

Role of 3.0 T MR vessel wall imaging for identifying the activity of takayasu arteritis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liu Xiaosheng; Xu Jianrong; Zhao Huilin; Cheng Fang; Lu Qing; Yao Qiuying

2010-01-01

Objective: To analyze and explore the value of 3 T high resolution magnetic resonance vessel wall imaging for identifying the activity of Takayasu arteritis. Methods: Twenty-six consecutive patients with Takayasu arteritis underwent 3.0 T high resolution MR vessel wall imaging on supraortic vessels (according to the classification of Lupi-Herrea, type I and III were included). Sixteen patients were in active phase and 10 in inactive phase based on the Kerr criteria. The MR vessel wall imaging appearances of Takayasu arteritis were compared between the active phase and inactive phase cases. Results: Wall thickening was demonstrated in all involved arteries. There were statistically significant differences between active phase and inactive phase cases in MR appearances including multi-ring thickening of vessel wall (75/80 and 18/50), arterial inner wail enhancement (50/80 and 19/50), obscurity of perivascular fat (55/80 and 18/50, X 2 =50.39, 7.41, 13.40, P<0.01). There was also a statistically significant difference in the thickness of carotid artery wall between the two groups [ (3.8 ± 0.2) mm vs (2.5 ± 0.8) mm]. Conclusion: 3 T high resolution MR vessel wall imaging is valuable for identifying the activity of Takayasu arteritis. (authors)

Visualizing the growth dynamics of individual single-wall carbon nanotubes

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Wagner, Jakob Birkedal; Zhang, Lili; He, Maoshuai

In order to meet the increasing demand of faster and more flexible electronics and optical devices and at the same time decrease the use of the critical metals, carbon based devices are in fast development. Single walled carbon nanotube (SWCNT) based electronics is a way of addressing...... around the studied sample at elevated temperature gives a unique way of monitoring gas-solid interactions such as CNT growth. Here we show the direct experimental evidence on the growth dynamics of SW-CNTs from Co/MgO catalysts using CO as carbon source inside the environmental TEM. The evolution...

Dynamics of plane-symmetric thin walls in general relativity

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang, A.

1992-01-01

Plane walls (including plane domain walls) without reflection symmetry are studied in the framework of Einstein's general relativity. Using the distribution theory, all the Einstein field equations and Bianchi identities are split into two groups: one holding in the regions outside of the wall and the other holding at the wall. The Einstein field equations at the wall are found to take a very simple form, and given explicitly in terms of the discontinuities of the metric coefficients and their derivatives. The Bianchi identities at the wall are also given explicitly. Using the latter, the interaction of a plane wall with gravitational waves and some specific matter fields is studied. In particular, it is found that, when a gravitational plane wave passes through a wall, if the wall has no reflection symmetry, the phenomena, such as reflection, stimulation, or absorption, in general, occur. It is also found that, unlike for gravitational waves, a massless scalar wave or an electromagnetic wave continuously passes through a wall without any reflection. The repulsion and attraction of a plane wall are also studied. It is found that the acceleration of an observer who is at rest relative to the wall usually consists of three parts: one is due to the force produced by the wall, the second is due to the force produced by the space-time curvature, which is zero if the wall has reflection symmetry, and the last is due to the accelerated motion of the wall. As a result, a repulsive (attractive) plane wall may not be repulsive (attractive) at all. Finally, the collision and interaction among the walls are studied

Mechanical Recanalization of Cerebral Artery Embolic Occlusion Using a Self-Expanding Stent: Experimental Analysis in Canine Model

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Choi, Jin Woo; Kim, Snag Joon; Lee, Deok Hee; Suh, Dae Chul

2011-01-01

To evaluate the feasibility of a self-expanding stent for acute embolic occlusion, and recanalization mechanism by histologic examination. Five mongrel dogs were used as study subjects. Each vertebral artery was occluded, and a self-expanding stent was used for recanalization. We evaluated the technical success rate for the placement of the stent to the targeted vessel, the recanalization rate, and residual stenosis. We obtained two specimens of the stented vertebral arteries for histologic evaluation. One dog died of an unknown cause during the induction of anesthesia. In two dogs, only one side of the vertebral artery was used, whereas both vertebral arteries were used in the remaining dogs. A total of six vertebral arteries were successfully occluded. The technical success rate for stenting without complication was 66.7%. The immediate recanalization rate after stenting was 100%. The residual stenosis was 35.6 ± 18.6%. On microscopic examination, the stent concentrically displaced the clot and the clot was captured between the stent mesh and arterial wall. Self-expanding stents were effective in revascularizing the cerebrovascular embolic occlusion. The self-expanding stent seemed to achieve recanalization by pushing the clot to the arterial wall and capturing the clot between the stent mesh and arterial wall.

Mechanical Recanalization of Cerebral Artery Embolic Occlusion Using a Self-Expanding Stent: Experimental Analysis in Canine Model

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Choi, Jin Woo; Kim, Snag Joon; Lee, Deok Hee; Suh, Dae Chul [Dept. of Radiology and Research Institute of Radiology, Asan Medical Center, Ulsan University College of Medicine, Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

2011-07-15

To evaluate the feasibility of a self-expanding stent for acute embolic occlusion, and recanalization mechanism by histologic examination. Five mongrel dogs were used as study subjects. Each vertebral artery was occluded, and a self-expanding stent was used for recanalization. We evaluated the technical success rate for the placement of the stent to the targeted vessel, the recanalization rate, and residual stenosis. We obtained two specimens of the stented vertebral arteries for histologic evaluation. One dog died of an unknown cause during the induction of anesthesia. In two dogs, only one side of the vertebral artery was used, whereas both vertebral arteries were used in the remaining dogs. A total of six vertebral arteries were successfully occluded. The technical success rate for stenting without complication was 66.7%. The immediate recanalization rate after stenting was 100%. The residual stenosis was 35.6 {+-} 18.6%. On microscopic examination, the stent concentrically displaced the clot and the clot was captured between the stent mesh and arterial wall. Self-expanding stents were effective in revascularizing the cerebrovascular embolic occlusion. The self-expanding stent seemed to achieve recanalization by pushing the clot to the arterial wall and capturing the clot between the stent mesh and arterial wall.

Computational Fluid Dynamics Simulations of Gas-Phase Radial Dispersion in Fixed Beds with Wall Effects

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Anthony G. Dixon

2017-10-01

Full Text Available The effective medium approach to radial fixed bed dispersion models, in which radial dispersion of mass is superimposed on axial plug flow, is based on a constant effective dispersion coefficient, DT. For packed beds of a small tube-to-particle diameter ratio (N, the experimentally-observed decrease in this parameter near the tube wall is accounted for by a lumped resistance located at the tube wall, the wall mass transfer coefficient km. This work presents validated computational fluid dynamics (CFD simulations to obtain detailed radial velocity and concentration profiles for eight different computer-generated packed tubes of spheres in the range 5.04 ≤ N ≤ 9.3 and over a range of flow rates 87 ≤ Re ≤ 870 where Re is based on superficial velocity and the particle diameter dp. Initial runs with pure air gave axial velocity profiles vz(r averaged over the length of the packing. Then, simulations with the tube wall coated with methane yielded radial concentration profiles. A model with only DT could not describe the radial concentration profiles. The two-parameter model with DT and km agreed better with the bed-center concentration profiles, but not with the sharp decreases in concentration close to the tube wall. A three-parameter model based on classical two-layer mixing length theory, with a wall-function for the decrease in transverse radial convective transport in the near-wall region, showed greatly improved ability to reproduce the near-wall concentration profiles.

Diagnosis of bronchiectasis and airway wall thickening in children with cystic fibrosis

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Kuo, Wieying; de Bruijne, Marleen; Petersen, Jens

2017-01-01

Objectives: To quantify airway and artery (AA)-dimensions in cystic fibrosis (CF) and control patients for objective CT diagnosis of bronchiectasis and airway wall thickness (AWT). Methods: Spirometer-guided inspiratory and expiratory CTs of 11 CF and 12 control patients were collected retrospect......Objectives: To quantify airway and artery (AA)-dimensions in cystic fibrosis (CF) and control patients for objective CT diagnosis of bronchiectasis and airway wall thickness (AWT). Methods: Spirometer-guided inspiratory and expiratory CTs of 11 CF and 12 control patients were collected...... following airway generation (p

Estimation of the supplementary axial wall stress generated at peak flow by an arterial stenosis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Doriot, Pierre-Andre

2003-01-01

Mechanical stresses in arterial walls are known to be implicated in the development of atherosclerosis. While shear stress and circumferential stress have received a lot of attention, axial stress has not. Yet, stenoses can be intuitively expected to produce a supplementary axial stress during flow systole in the region immediately proximal to the constriction cone. In this paper, a model for the estimation of this effect is presented, and ten numerical examples are computed. These examples show that the cyclic increase in axial stress can be quite considerable in severe stenoses (typically 120% or more of the normal stress value). This result is in best agreement with the known mechanical or morphological risk factors of stenosis progression and restenosis (hypertension, elevated pulse pressure, degree of stenosis, stenosis geometry, residual stenosis, etc). The supplementary axial stress generated by a stenosis might create the damages in the endothelium and in the elastic membranes which potentiate the action of the other risk factors (hyperlipidaemia, diabetes, etc). It could thus be an important cause of stenosis progression and of restenosis

Estimation of the supplementary axial wall stress generated at peak flow by an arterial stenosis

Science.gov (United States)

Doriot, Pierre-André

2003-01-01

Mechanical stresses in arterial walls are known to be implicated in the development of atherosclerosis. While shear stress and circumferential stress have received a lot of attention, axial stress has not. Yet, stenoses can be intuitively expected to produce a supplementary axial stress during flow systole in the region immediately proximal to the constriction cone. In this paper, a model for the estimation of this effect is presented, and ten numerical examples are computed. These examples show that the cyclic increase in axial stress can be quite considerable in severe stenoses (typically 120% or more of the normal stress value). This result is in best agreement with the known mechanical or morphological risk factors of stenosis progression and restenosis (hypertension, elevated pulse pressure, degree of stenosis, stenosis geometry, residual stenosis, etc). The supplementary axial stress generated by a stenosis might create the damages in the endothelium and in the elastic membranes which potentiate the action of the other risk factors (hyperlipidaemia, diabetes, etc). It could thus be an important cause of stenosis progression and of restenosis.

Coronary artery abnormalities in children with systemic-onset juvenile idiopathic arthritis.

Science.gov (United States)

Lefèvre-Utile, Alain; Galeotti, Caroline; Koné-Paut, Isabelle

2014-05-01

Still's disease (Systemic-onset Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis: SoJIA) is characterised by high-spiking daily fevers, arthritis and evanescent rashes. Diagnosis of Still's disease is often challenging. Infectious diseases and other inflammatory conditions, especially in young children, Kawasaki disease may look similar. Clinicians often rely on echocardiographic evidence of coronary artery abnormalities to differentiate between Kawasaki disease and Still's disease. Coronary artery dilation would typically favour the diagnosis of Kawasaki disease. We present four children with Still's disease and coronary artery abnormalities who were initially misdiagnosed as Kawasaki disease. The first patient had pericarditis and an irregular wall of the left coronary artery, without dilation on echocardiography. The second patient had a left coronary artery dilatation and a pericarditis. The third patient had thickened left coronary artery walls, and the fourth patient had a hyperechogenicity of the left and right coronary arteries. They received IVIG without success. The diagnosis of Still's disease was made secondary with evidence of persistent arthritis. All but one patient finally needed biologic treatments. Coronary abnormalities may be observed during various febrile conditions and do not exclude the diagnosis of Still's disease. Copyright © 2013 Société française de rhumatologie. Published by Elsevier SAS. All rights reserved.

Quantifying Intracranial Aneurysm Wall Permeability for Risk Assessment Using Dynamic Contrast-Enhanced MRI: A Pilot Study.

Science.gov (United States)

Vakil, P; Ansari, S A; Cantrell, C G; Eddleman, C S; Dehkordi, F H; Vranic, J; Hurley, M C; Batjer, H H; Bendok, B R; Carroll, T J

2015-05-01

Pathological changes in the intracranial aneurysm wall may lead to increases in its permeability; however the clinical significance of such changes has not been explored. The purpose of this pilot study was to quantify intracranial aneurysm wall permeability (K(trans), VL) to contrast agent as a measure of aneurysm rupture risk and compare these parameters against other established measures of rupture risk. We hypothesized K(trans) would be associated with intracranial aneurysm rupture risk as defined by various anatomic, imaging, and clinical risk factors. Twenty-seven unruptured intracranial aneurysms in 23 patients were imaged with dynamic contrast-enhanced MR imaging, and wall permeability parameters (K(trans), VL) were measured in regions adjacent to the aneurysm wall and along the paired control MCA by 2 blinded observers. K(trans) and VL were evaluated as markers of rupture risk by comparing them against established clinical (symptomatic lesions) and anatomic (size, location, morphology, multiplicity) risk metrics. Interobserver agreement was strong as shown in regression analysis (R(2) > 0.84) and intraclass correlation (intraclass correlation coefficient >0.92), indicating that the K(trans) can be reliably assessed clinically. All intracranial aneurysms had a pronounced increase in wall permeability compared with the paired healthy MCA (P risk in anatomic (P = .02) and combined anatomic/clinical (P = .03) groups independent of size. We report the first evidence of dynamic contrast-enhanced MR imaging-modeled contrast permeability in intracranial aneurysms. We found that contrast agent permeability across the aneurysm wall correlated significantly with both aneurysm size and size-independent anatomic risk factors. In addition, K(trans) was a significant and size-independent predictor of morphologically and clinically defined high-risk aneurysms. © 2015 by American Journal of Neuroradiology.

Detection of vessel wall calcifications in vertebral arteries using susceptibility weighted imaging

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Adams, Lisa C.; Boeker, Sarah M.; Bender, Yvonne Y.; Fallenberg, Eva M.; Wagner, Moritz; Hamm, Bernd; Makowski, Marcus R. [Department of Radiology, Charite, Berlin (Germany); Liebig, Thomas [Department of Neuroradiology, Charite, Berlin (Germany)

2017-09-15

Calcification of the brain supplying arteries has been linked to an increased risk for cerebrovascular disease. The purpose of this study was to test the potential of susceptibility weighted MR imaging (SWMR) for the detection of vertebral artery calcifications, based on CT as a reference standard. Four hundred seventy-four patients, who had received head CT and 1.5 T MR scans with SWMR, including the distal vertebral artery, between January 2014 and December 2016, were retrospectively evaluated and 389 patients were included. Sensitivity and specificity for the detection of focal calcifications and intra- and interobserver agreement were calculated for SWMR and standard MRI, using CT as a standard of reference. The diameter of vertebral artery calcifications was used to assess correlations between imaging modalities. Furthermore, the degree of vessel stenosis was determined in 30 patients, who had received an additional angiography. On CT scans, 40 patients showed a total of 52 vertebral artery calcifications. While SWMR reached a sensitivity of 94% (95% CI 84-99%) and a specificity of 97% (95% CI 94-98%), standard MRI yielded a sensitivity of 33% (95% CI 20-46%), and a specificity of 93% (95% CI 90-96%). Linear regression analysis of size measurements confirmed a close correlation between SWMR and CT measurements (R {sup 2} = 0.74, p < 0.001). Compared to standard MRI (ICC = 0.52; CI 0.45-0.59), SWMR showed a higher interobserver agreement for calcification measurements (ICC = 0.84; CI 0.81-0.87). For detection of distal vertebral artery calcifications, SWMR demonstrates a performance comparable to CT and considerably higher than conventional MRI. (orig.)

Three-dimensional modelling of the human carotid artery using the lattice Boltzmann method: II. Shear analysis

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Boyd, J [Cardiovascular Research Group, Physics, University of New England, Armidale, NSW 2351 (Australia); Buick, J M [Mechanical and Design Engineering, Anglesea Building, Anglesea Road, University of Portsmouth, Portsmouth, PO1 3DJ (United Kingdom)

2008-10-21

Near-wall shear is known to be important in the pathogenesis and progression of atherosclerosis. In this paper, the shear field in a three-dimensional model of the human carotid artery is presented. The simulations are performed using the lattice Boltzmann model and are presented at six times of interest during a physiologically accurate velocity waveform. The near-wall shear rate and von Mises effective shear are also examined. Regions of low near-wall shear rates are observed near the outer wall of the bifurcation and in the lower regions of the external carotid artery. These are regions where low near-wall velocity and circulatory flows have been observed and are regions that are typically prone to atherosclerosis.

Three-dimensional modelling of the human carotid artery using the lattice Boltzmann method: II. Shear analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Boyd, J; Buick, J M

2008-01-01

Near-wall shear is known to be important in the pathogenesis and progression of atherosclerosis. In this paper, the shear field in a three-dimensional model of the human carotid artery is presented. The simulations are performed using the lattice Boltzmann model and are presented at six times of interest during a physiologically accurate velocity waveform. The near-wall shear rate and von Mises effective shear are also examined. Regions of low near-wall shear rates are observed near the outer wall of the bifurcation and in the lower regions of the external carotid artery. These are regions where low near-wall velocity and circulatory flows have been observed and are regions that are typically prone to atherosclerosis.

Fifteen new risk loci for coronary artery disease highlight arterial wall-specific mechanisms

OpenAIRE

Howson, Joanna M.M.; Zhao, Wei; Barnes, Daniel R.; Ho, Weang-Kee; Young, Robin; Paul, Dirk S.; Waite, Lindsay L.; Freitag, Daniel F.; Fauman, Eric B.; Salfati, Elias L.; Sun, Benjamin B.; Eicher, John D.; Johnson, Andrew D.; Sheu, Wayne H.H.; Nielsen, Sune F.

2017-01-01

Coronary artery disease (CAD) is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Although 58 genomic regions have been associated with CAD thus far, most of the heritability is unexplained, indicating that additional susceptibility loci await identification. An efficient discovery strategy may be larger-scale evaluation of promising associations suggested by genome-wide association studies (GWAS). Hence, we genotyped 56,309 participants using a targeted gene array derived from earlier G...

Fifteen new risk loci for coronary artery disease highlight arterial-wall-specific mechanisms

OpenAIRE

Howson, Joanna McCammond; Zhao, W; Barnes, Daniel Robert; Ho, W-K; Young, R; Paul, Dirk Stefan; Waite, LL; Freitag, DF; Fauman, EB; Salfati, EL; Sun, Benjamin; Eicher, JD; Johnson, AD; Sheu, WHH; Nielsen, SF

2017-01-01

Coronary artery disease (CAD) is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Although 58 genomic regions have been associated with CAD thus far, most of the heritability is unexplained, indicating that additional susceptibility loci await identification. An efficient discovery strategy may be larger-scale evaluation of promising associations suggested by genome-wide association studies (GWAS). Hence, we genotyped 56,309 participants using a targeted gene array derived from earlier G...

Modeling of the blood flow in the lower extremities for dynamic diffuse optical tomography of peripheral artery disease

Science.gov (United States)

Marone, A.; Hoi, J. W.; Khalil, M. A.; Kim, H. K.; Shrikhande, G.; Dayal, R.; Hielscher, A. H.

2015-07-01

Peripheral Arterial Disease (PAD) is caused by a reduction of the internal diameters of the arteries in the upper or lower extremities mainly due to atherosclerosis. If not treated, its worsening may led to a complete occlusion, causing the death of the cells lacking proper blood supply, followed by gangrene that may require chirurgical amputation. We have recently performed a clinical study in which good sensitivities and specificities were achieved with dynamic diffuse optical tomography. To gain a better understanding of the physiological foundations of many of the observed effects, we started to develop a mathematical model for PAD. The model presented in this work is based on a multi-compartment Windkessel model, where the vasculature in the leg and foot is represented by resistors and capacitors, the blood pressure with a voltage drop, and the blood flow with a current. Unlike existing models, the dynamics induced by a thigh-pressure-cuff inflation and deflation during the measurements are taken into consideration. This is achieved by dynamically varying the resistances of the large veins and arteries. By including the effects of the thigh-pressure cuff, we were able to explain many of the effects observed during our dynamic DOT measurements, including the hemodynamics of oxy- and deoxy-hemoglobin concentration changes. The model was implemented in MATLAB and the simulations were normalized and compared with the blood perfusion obtained from healthy, PAD and diabetic patients. Our preliminary results show that in unhealthy patients the total system resistance is sensibly higher than in healthy patients.

Pseudoaneurysm of the Radial Artery After a Bicycle Fall.

Science.gov (United States)

Ratschiller, Thomas; Müller, Hannes; Schachner, Thomas; Zierer, Andreas

2018-07-01

We report a case of a 64-year-old man who developed a painful pulsatile mass in the distal forearm after a bicycle fall with fracture of the wrist. Ultrasonography confirmed a 2.5-cm large pseudoaneurysm of the radial artery. The patient underwent surgical exploration. The pseudoaneurysm was resected and the defect in the arterial wall was reconstructed with an autologous saphenous vein patch. We suggest that the double arterial supply of the hand should be preserved whenever possible.

A different kind of Christmas tree: anomalous origin of the right coronary artery from the pulmonary artery (ARCAPA).

Science.gov (United States)

Afolabi-Brown, Olayinka; Witzke, Christian; Moldovan, Raul; Pressman, Gregg

2014-02-01

Anomalous right coronary artery from the pulmonary artery (ARCAPA) is a rare congenital coronary anomaly that has an incidence of 0.002%. We report a case of a previously healthy female who presented to our hospital with pneumonia and was incidentally discovered to have ARCAPA. This was initially diagnosed on echocardiography by the unusual echocardiographic finding of multiple color flow Doppler signals around the right ventricular free wall and apex which were subsequently confirmed by angiography to be due to extensive collateral circulation between the left and right coronary arteries. This represents an unusual echocardiographic manifestation of this very rare condition. © 2013, Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Non-gated vessel wall imaging of the internal carotid artery using radial scanning and fast spin echo sequence. Evaluation of vessel signal intensity by flow rate at 3.0 tesla

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nakamura, Manami; Makabe, Takeshi; Ichikawa, Masaki; Hatakeyama, Ryohei; Sugimori, Hiroyuki; Sakata, Motomichi

2013-01-01

Vessel wall imaging using radial scanning does not use a blood flow suppression pulse with gated acquisition. It has been proposed that there may not be a flow void effect if the flow rate is slow; however, this has yet to be empirically tested. To clarify the relationship between the signal intensity of the vessel lumen and the blood flow rate in a flow phantom, we investigated the usefulness of vessel wall imaging at 3.0 tesla (T). We measured the signal intensity while changing the flow rate in the flow phantom. Radial scanning at 1.5 T showed sufficient flow voids at above medium flow rates. There was no significant difference in lumen signal intensity at the carotid artery flow rate. The signal intensity of the vessel lumen decreased sufficiently using the radial scan method at 3.0 T. We thus obtained sufficient flow void effects at the carotid artery flow rate. We conclude this technique to be useful for evaluating plaque if high contrast can be maintained for fixed tissue (such as plaque) and the vessel lumen. (author)

A 2D nonlinear multiring model for blood flow in large elastic arteries

Science.gov (United States)

Ghigo, Arthur R.; Fullana, Jose-Maria; Lagrée, Pierre-Yves

2017-12-01

In this paper, we propose a two-dimensional nonlinear ;multiring; model to compute blood flow in axisymmetric elastic arteries. This model is designed to overcome the numerical difficulties of three-dimensional fluid-structure interaction simulations of blood flow without using the over-simplifications necessary to obtain one-dimensional blood flow models. This multiring model is derived by integrating over concentric rings of fluid the simplified long-wave Navier-Stokes equations coupled to an elastic model of the arterial wall. The resulting system of balance laws provides a unified framework in which both the motion of the fluid and the displacement of the wall are dealt with simultaneously. The mathematical structure of the multiring model allows us to use a finite volume method that guarantees the conservation of mass and the positivity of the numerical solution and can deal with nonlinear flows and large deformations of the arterial wall. We show that the finite volume numerical solution of the multiring model provides at a reasonable computational cost an asymptotically valid description of blood flow velocity profiles and other averaged quantities (wall shear stress, flow rate, ...) in large elastic and quasi-rigid arteries. In particular, we validate the multiring model against well-known solutions such as the Womersley or the Poiseuille solutions as well as against steady boundary layer solutions in quasi-rigid constricted and expanded tubes.

Usefulness of detecting atherosclerosis by computed tomography. A relation to coronary artery stenosis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Takasu, Junichiro; Yamamoto, Rie; Yokoyama, Kenichi

1999-01-01

Reports evaluating coronary artery calcification detection by nonenhanced computed tomography (CT) have verified the usefulness for diagnosis of coronary artery disease. In the condition of a mobile CT scanning at a public health examination, however, determination of coronary calcification remains unclear. We investigated, under this scanning condition, a relation between the characteristic of coronary artery calcification determined by conventional CT and coronary disease on arteriogram. The quantification of aortic wall thickening by enhanced CT was examined on the usefulness of detecting coronary artery disease. The CT density score and the characteristics of aortic atherosclerosis for 159 male patients 30 year-old or more (average age 60.7 years) were examined the relation to coronary artery stenoses. The CT density score was the strongest independent variable for determining the existence of coronary disease. The CT density cutoff score for detection of coronary disease was 50 equal to 50 HU the maximal CT density in the coronary arteries. The maximal aortic wall thickness was the strongest significant variable independent of the noted coronary risk factors for the severity of coronary stenosis on arteriogram. (author)

Determination of wall tension in cerebral artery aneurysms by numerical simulation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Isaksen, J.G.; Bazilevs, Y.; Kvamsdal, T.

2008-01-01

a computational model for simulation of fluid-structure interaction in cerebral aneurysms based on patient specific lesion geometry, with special emphasis on wall tension. METHODS: An advanced isogeometric fluid-structure analysis model incorporating flexible aneurysm wall based on patient specific computed...

State stiffness parameters of the vascular wall in hypertensive patients complex therapy cytoprotector and sartans

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V. P. Mikhin

2015-01-01

Full Text Available A randomized study of the state of stiffness parameters arteries wall (CAVI — cardio-ankle vascular index, AI (augmentation index PEP (duration of the voltage of the left ventricle using «VaSera-1000» («Fukuda Denshi», Japan in primary hypertension patients (80 not treated with systemic antihypertensive therapy. The effect of long-term (3 months was be marketed. Losartan combined with Mexicor 300mg/day or mildronate 1000 mg/day for the specified parameters. It sets the initial reduction the properties of the arterial wall in patients with hypertension, in contrast to healthy individuals. Mexicor or mildronat accompanied by improvement east-cal properties of the arterial wall, reducing CAVI and AI in 3 months on 9.4% and 8.9%, 14.9% and 15.4%, respectively. In the control group-term change CAVI and AI no. Mexicor led to a more pronounced increase in PEP, than mildronate, respectively, on 23.7% and 18.9%. Losartan monotherapy results in a less pronounced decrease in the stiffness of the vessel wall.

Dynamic Behavior of Nanocomposites Reinforced with Multi-Walled Carbon Nanotubes (MWCNTs

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Chun-Yu Lai

2013-06-01

Full Text Available The influence of multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWCNT on the structural dynamic behavior of MWCNT/epoxy nanocomposites was investigated. Two different types of MWCNTs, pristine MWCNT and functionalized MWCNT, were used in this study. Carboxylic acid-functionalized MWCNTs (MWCNT-COOH were obtained by oxidation pristine MWCNTs via sonication in sulfuric-nitric acid and characterized by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR. Dynamic behaviors of the MWCNT reinforced nanocomposite including the natural frequency and damping ratio were determined using free vibration test. Experimental results showed that the damping ratio of the nanocomposite decreases with the increase of the MWCNT addition, while the natural frequency is increasing with the increase of the MWCNT addition. Functionalized MWCNTs improved the interfacial bonding between the nanotubes and epoxy resin resulting in the reduction of the interfacial energy dissipation ability and enhancement of the stiffness.

Sudden death in a captive meerkat(Suricata suricatta) with arterial medial and myocardial calcification

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

Laura Bongiovann; Nicola Di Girolamo; Leonardo Della Salda; Marcella Massimi; Mariarita Romanucci; Paolo Selleri

2016-01-01

A 1-year-old male meerkat was found dead by the owner.The animal was clinically healthy and was regularly vaccinated for distemper virus.Necropsy revealed multifocal to confluent dry white areas in the myocardium,pneumonia and congestive hepatopathy.All the other organs,including gross vessels,were macroscopically normal.The heart showed histologically large,multifocal to confluent areas of mineralization of the myocardium and the wall of small coronary artery.Vascular calcifications were also observed in the hepatic portal tracts and kidneys arteries of small/medium sizes.The arterial lumen appeared narrowed and the wall thickened due to the calcification of the tunica media.In veterinary medicine,arterial mineralization is regarded as a metastatic calcification,as the result of hypercalcemia and/or hyperphosphatemia.However,today,the pathogenesis of medial artery calcification in humans seems to be the results of an active process resembling embryonic osteogenesis,rather than a mere passive process.

Detection of coronary artery disease - comparison of exercise stress radionuclide angiocardiography and thallium stress perfusion scanning

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jengo, J.A.; Freeman, R.; Brizendine, M.; Mena, I.; St. Mary Medical Center, Long Beach, Calif.)

1980-01-01

Exercise thallium scanning and stress radionuclide angiography were compared in 16 normal subjects and 42 patients with more than 75% coronary arterial obstruction in studies using upright exercise on a bicycle ergometer. Studies at rest were subsequently obtained. Exercise thallium scans in the control group were normal in 15 and showed a defect in 1. Ejection fraction increased in all 16. During exercise, regional wall motion increased uniformly. In the group with coronary artery disease, thallium scanning revealed a new defect in the distribution of the involved arteries in 24 patients. In 15 who had a defect at rest, no new defect developed, but in 9 of the 15 new segmental wall motion defects were evident on radionuclide angiography. With exercise, ejection fraction decreased slightly. Regional wall motion abnormalities developed in the areas corresponding to thallium defects in all. Thallium scanning had a 93% and radionuclide angiography a 98% sensitivity value in detecting coronary artery disease. The respective specificity values were 94 and 100%. In patients with prior myocardial infarction who manifested new exercise abnormalities, 50% showed new thallium defects and 81% new wall motion defects

Correlation between arterial wall stiffness, N-terminal prohormone of brain natriuretic peptide, functional and structural myocardial abnormalities in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus and cardiac autonomic neuropathy

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Viktoriya Aleksandrovna Serhiyenko

2013-12-01

Full Text Available Aim. To assess arterial wall stiffness, plasma levels of of N-terminal prohormone of brain natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP, as well as functional state and structure of the myocardium in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM and cardiac autonomic neuropathy (CAN.Materials and Methods. The study involved a total of 65 patients with T2DM. 12 had no evidence of cardiovascular disease (CVD or CAN, 14 were diagnosed with subclinical stage of CAN, 18 – with functional stage, and 21 – with organic stage. We measured aortic pulse wave velocity (PWV, aortic augmentation index (AIx, brachial artery AIx, ambulatory arterial stiffness index (AASI and plasma levels of NT-proBNP. Clinical examination included ECG, Holter monitoring, ambulatory BP measurement and echocardiography.Results. Patients with isolated T2DM showed a trend for increased vascular wall stiffness. PWV was increased in patients with subclinical stage of CAN. Aortic and brachial AIx, PWV and AASI were elevated in patients with functional stage of CAN, PWV being significantly higher vs. subclinical CAN subgroup. Organic stage was characterized by pathologically increased values of all primary parameters; PWV and AASI were significantly higher compared with other groups. Development and progression of CAN was accompanied by an increase in NT-proBNP plasma levels. Concentration of NT-proBNP was in direct correlation with left ventricular mass (LVM and PWV. PWV and LVM values also directly correlated between themselves.Conclusion. Development and progression of CAN in patients with T2DM is accompanied by an increase in vascular wall stiffness. The elevation of plasma NT-proBNP in patients with T2DM correlates with the development of CAN and is significantly and independently associated with an increase in LVM and PWV. Our data suggests the pathophysiological interconnection between metabolic, functional and structural myocardial abnormalities in patients with T2DM and CAN.

Correlation between arterial wall stiffness, N-terminal prohormone of brain natriuretic peptide, functional and structural myocardial abnormalities in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus and cardiac autonomic neuropathy

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Viktoriya Alexandrovna Serhiyenko

2013-12-01

Full Text Available Aim. To assess arterial wall stiffness, plasma levels of of N-terminal prohormone of brain natriuretic peptide (NT-proBNP, as well as functional state and structure of the myocardium in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM and cardiac autonomic neuropathy (CAN. Materials and Methods. The study involved a total of 65 patients with T2DM. 12 had no evidence of cardiovascular disease (CVD or CAN, 14 were diagnosed with subclinical stage of CAN, 18 ? with functional stage, and 21 ? with organic stage. We measured aortic pulse wave velocity (PWV, aortic augmentation index (AIx, brachial artery AIx, ambulatory arterial stiffness index (AASI and plasma levels of NT-proBNP. Clinical examination included ECG, Holter monitoring, ambulatory BP measurement and echocardiography. Results.  Patients with isolated T2DM showed a trend for increased vascular wall stiffness. PWV was increased in patients with subclinical stage of CAN. Aortic and brachial AIx, PWV and AASI were elevated in patients with functional stage of CAN, PWV being significantly higher vs. subclinical CAN subgroup. Organic stage was characterized by pathologically increased values of all primary parameters; PWV and AASI were significantly higher compared with other groups. Development and progression of CAN was accompanied by an increase in NT-proBNP plasma levels. Concentration of NT-proBNP was in direct correlation with left ventricular mass (LVM and PWV. PWV and LVM values also directly correlated between themselves. Conclusion. Development and progression of CAN in patients with T2DM is accompanied by an increase in vascular wall stiffness. The elevation of plasma NT-proBNP in patients with T2DM correlates with the development of CAN and is significantly and independently associated with an increase in LVM and PWV. Our data suggests the pathophysiological interconnection between metabolic, functional and structural myocardial abnormalities in patients with T2DM and CAN.

High-resolution intracranial vessel wall MRI in an elderly asymptomatic population: comparison of 3T and 7T

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Harteveld, Anita A.; Kolk, Anja G. van der; Dieleman, Nikki; Siero, Jeroen C.W.; Luijten, Peter R.; Zwanenburg, Jaco J.M.; Hendrikse, Jeroen [University Medical Center Utrecht, Department of Radiology, Postbox 85500, Utrecht (Netherlands); Worp, H.B. van der; Frijns, Catharina J.M. [University Medical Center Utrecht, Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Brain Center Rudolf Magnus, Utrecht (Netherlands); Kuijf, Hugo J. [University Medical Center Utrecht, Image Sciences Institute, Utrecht (Netherlands)

2017-04-15

Several intracranial vessel wall sequences have been described in recent literature, with either 3-T or 7-T magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). In the current study, we compared 3-T and 7-T MRI in visualising both the intracranial arterial vessel wall and vessel wall lesions. Twenty-one elderly asymptomatic volunteers were scanned by 3-T and 7-T MRI with an intracranial vessel wall sequence, both before and after contrast administration. Two raters scored image quality, and presence and characteristics of vessel wall lesions. Vessel wall visibility was equal or significantly better at 7 T for the studied arterial segments, even though there were more artefacts hampering assessment. The better visualisation of the vessel wall at 7 T was most prominent in the proximal anterior cerebral circulation and the posterior cerebral artery. In the studied elderly asymptomatic population, 48 vessel-wall lesions were identified at 3 T, of which 7 showed enhancement. At 7 T, 79 lesions were identified, of which 29 showed enhancement. Seventy-one percent of all 3-T lesions and 59 % of all 7-T lesions were also seen at the other field strength. Despite the large variability in detected lesions at both field strengths, we believe 7-T MRI has the highest potential to identify the total burden of intracranial vessel wall lesions. (orig.)

Initial isolated Takayasu's arteritis of the right pulmonary artery: MR appearance

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ferretti, G.; Defaye, P.; Thony, F.; Ranchoup, Y.; Coulomb, M.

1996-01-01

Takayasu's arteritis involves the pulmonary artery tree in more than 50 % of the cases. Initial isolated involvement of the pulmonary artery by Takayasu's arteritis, however, is very rare. We report the case of a 34-year-old white woman who presented a clinical and radiographic pattern that mimicked an acute pulmonary embolism with pulmonary infarction. Pulmonary angiography showed stenosis lesions and occlusion of the right pulmonary artery tree. Magnetic resonance imaging demonstrated thickening of the pulmonary artery wall leading to the correct diagnosis. (orig.). With 3 figs

Controlled circumferential renal sympathetic denervation with preservation of the renal arterial wall using intraluminal ultrasound: a next-generation approach for treating sympathetic overactivity.

Science.gov (United States)

Sakakura, Kenichi; Roth, Austin; Ladich, Elena; Shen, Kai; Coleman, Leslie; Joner, Michael; Virmani, Renu

2015-02-01

The Paradise Ultrasound Renal Denervation System is a next-generation catheter-based device which was used to investigate whether the target ablation area can be controlled by changing ultrasound energy and duration to optimise nerve injury while preventing damage to the arterial wall. Five ultrasound doses were tested in a thermal gel model. Catheter-based ultrasound denervation was performed in 15 swine (29 renal arteries) to evaluate five different doses in vivo, and animals were euthanised at seven days for histopathologic assessment. In the gel model, the peak temperature was highest in the low power-long duration (LP-LD) dose, followed by the mid-low power-mid duration (MLP-MD) dose and the mid-high power-short duration (MHP-SD) dose, and lowest in the mid power-short duration (MP-SD) dose and the high power-ultra short duration (HP-USD) dose. In the animal study, total ablation area was significantly greater in the LP-LD group, followed by the MLP-MD group, and it was least in the HP-USD, MP-SD and MHP-SD groups (p=0.02). Maximum distance was significantly greater in the LP-LD group, followed by the MLP-MD group, the MHP-SD group, and the HP-USD group, and shortest in the MP-SD group (p=0.007). The short spare distance was not different among the five groups (p=0.38). Renal artery damage was minimal, while preserving significant nerve damage in all groups. The Paradise Ultrasound Renal Denervation System is a controllable system where total ablation area and depth of ablation can be optimised by changing ultrasound power and duration while sparing renal arterial tissue damage but allowing sufficient peri-arterial nerve damage.

Endovascular Treatment of a Splenic Aneurysm Associated With Segmental Arterial Mediolysis

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A. Khan

Full Text Available : Introduction: Segmental arterial mediolysis is a rare disorder characterised by disintegration of the medial layer of an arterial wall usually affecting the intra-abdominal splanchnic vessels. Report: A case of 50 year old man who presented with sudden-onset left sided flank pain is reported. A computed tomography mesenteric angiogram showed haemorrhage and a stable left upper quadrant haematoma arising from 8 × 8 mm splenic artery aneurysm. Discussion: The patient underwent a successful endovascular coiling procedure to exclude the aneurysm and for complete resolution of his symptoms. Keywords: Segmental arterial mediolysis, Splanchnic vessels, Splenic artery aneurysm

Three-dimensional modelling of the human carotid artery using the lattice Boltzmann method: I. Model and velocity analysis

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Boyd, J [Cardiovascular Research Group Physics, University of New England, Armidale, NSW 2351 (Australia); Buick, J M [Department of Mechanical and Design Engineering, University of Portsmouth, Anglesea Building, Anglesea Road, Portsmouth PO1 3DJ (United Kingdom)

2008-10-21

Numerical modelling is a powerful tool in the investigation of human blood flow and arterial diseases such as atherosclerosis. It is known that near wall velocity and shear are important in the pathogenesis and progression of atherosclerosis. In this paper results for a simulation of blood flow in a three-dimensional carotid artery geometry using the lattice Boltzmann method are presented. The velocity fields in the body of the fluid are analysed at six times of interest during a physiologically accurate velocity waveform. It is found that the three-dimensional model agrees well with previous literature results for carotid artery flow. Regions of low near wall velocity and circulatory flow are observed near the outer wall of the bifurcation and in the lower regions of the external carotid artery, which are regions that are typically prone to atherosclerosis.

Three-dimensional modelling of the human carotid artery using the lattice Boltzmann method: I. Model and velocity analysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Boyd, J; Buick, J M

2008-01-01

Numerical modelling is a powerful tool in the investigation of human blood flow and arterial diseases such as atherosclerosis. It is known that near wall velocity and shear are important in the pathogenesis and progression of atherosclerosis. In this paper results for a simulation of blood flow in a three-dimensional carotid artery geometry using the lattice Boltzmann method are presented. The velocity fields in the body of the fluid are analysed at six times of interest during a physiologically accurate velocity waveform. It is found that the three-dimensional model agrees well with previous literature results for carotid artery flow. Regions of low near wall velocity and circulatory flow are observed near the outer wall of the bifurcation and in the lower regions of the external carotid artery, which are regions that are typically prone to atherosclerosis.

Impairment of Arterial Compliance in Cushing’s Syndrome

Science.gov (United States)

Maria Zedda, Angela; Mercuro, Giuseppe

2014-01-01

Abstract Arterial stiffness may be useful for stratifying cardiovascular risk in individuals suffering from a number of pathologies, such as hypertension, diabetes, obesity, dyslipidaemia and coronary artery disease. Cushing’s syndrome is underpinned by a complex metabolic syndrome, which is potentially implicated in the onset of blood vessel alterations and the increase in arterial wall stiffness. The aim of this paper was to perform a review about the most important studies conducted in order to evaluate the arterial distensibility profile of subjects affected by Cushing’s syndrome. Increased arterial stiffness may persist even after successful cure of this disease. It is therefore of fundamental importance to identify the presence of early vascular alterations in these patients, in order to commence their treatment and thus attempt to prevent the subsequent onset of adverse cardiovascular events.

Assessing Collagen and Elastin Pressure-Dependent Microarchitectures in Live, Human Resistance Arteries by Label-Free Fluorescence Microscopy

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Bloksgaard, Maria; Thorsted, Bjarne; Brewer, Jonathan R.

2017-01-01

The pathogenic contribution of resistance artery remodeling is documented in essential hypertension, diabetes and the metabolic syndrome. Investigations and development of microstructurally motivated mathematical models for understanding the mechanical properties of human resistance arteries...... in health and disease have the potential to aid understanding how disease and medical treatments affect the human microcirculation. To develop these mathematical models, it is essential to decipher the relationship between the mechanical and microarchitectural properties of the microvascular wall....... In this work, we describe an ex vivo method for passive mechanical testing and simultaneous label-free three-dimensional imaging of the microarchitecture of elastin and collagen in the arterial wall of isolated human resistance arteries. The imaging protocol can be applied to resistance arteries of any species...

Pea Border Cell Maturation and Release Involve Complex Cell Wall Structural Dynamics1[OPEN

Science.gov (United States)

2017-01-01

The adhesion of plant cells is vital for support and protection of the plant body and is maintained by a variety of molecular associations between cell wall components. In some specialized cases, though, plant cells are programmed to detach, and root cap-derived border cells are examples of this. Border cells (in some species known as border-like cells) provide an expendable barrier between roots and the environment. Their maturation and release is an important but poorly characterized cell separation event. To gain a deeper insight into the complex cellular dynamics underlying this process, we undertook a systematic, detailed analysis of pea (Pisum sativum) root tip cell walls. Our study included immunocarbohydrate microarray profiling, monosaccharide composition determination, Fourier-transformed infrared microspectroscopy, quantitative reverse transcription-PCR of cell wall biosynthetic genes, analysis of hydrolytic activities, transmission electron microscopy, and immunolocalization of cell wall components. Using this integrated glycobiology approach, we identified multiple novel modes of cell wall structural and compositional rearrangement during root cap growth and the release of border cells. Our findings provide a new level of detail about border cell maturation and enable us to develop a model of the separation process. We propose that loss of adhesion by the dissolution of homogalacturonan in the middle lamellae is augmented by an active biophysical process of cell curvature driven by the polarized distribution of xyloglucan and extensin epitopes. PMID:28400496

Transcatheter arterial embolization for traumatic bleeding control

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ryu, Choon Wook; Lee, Sang Kwon; Suh, Kyung Jin; Kim, Tae Heon; Kim, Yong Joo; Kang, Duck Sik

1989-01-01

Angiography is essential for the detection of bleeding vessels in traumatic vascular injury. Immediately after the diagnosis, transcatheter embolization can be performed for the control of bleeding effectively and easily with proper use of embolic materials. Transcatheter embolization is believed to be the treatment of choice when emergency control is needed, where surgical approach is difficult and in those who are poor candidate for surgery. We have tried bleeding control in 18 cases of trauma over recent 4 years. The results were as follows; 1. Causes of bleeding(cases): Blunt or penetrating trauma (10), latrogenic trauma (8), (Postoperative (5), Needle biopsy (2), Percutaneous hepatic procedure (1)) 2. Embolized vessels: Renal artery branches (8), Hepatic artery branches (2), Arteries supplying chest wall (2), External carotid artery branches (3), Internal carotid artery (1), Circumflex humeral artery (1), Internal iliac artery branches (1). 3. Embolic agents: Gelfoam cubes (16), Stainless steel coils (3), Detachable latex balloon (1). 4. Successful bleeding control was achieved in 17 cases and reduction of the amount of bleeding in one case without significant complications

Unremitting embolus from cardiac myxoma at circumflex artery trifurcation.

Science.gov (United States)