| 1. |
- Gabrielsson, Britt, 1957, et al.
(författare)
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Dietary herring improves plasma lipid profiles and reduces atherosclerosis in obese low-density lipoprotein receptor-deficient mice
- 2012
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Ingår i: International Journal of Molecular Medicine. - : Spandidos Publications. - 1107-3756 .- 1791-244X. ; 29:3, s. 331-37
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Diet is a significant modifiable risk factor for cardiovascular disease and high fish intake has been associated with vascular health in population studies. However, intervention studies have been inconclusive. In this study, male low-density lipoprotein receptor-deficient mice were given 16-week high fat/high sucrose diets, supplemented with either minced herring fillets or minced beef. The diets were matched in total fat and cholesterol content; taurine content and fatty acid composition was analysed. Body weights were recorded throughout the study; plasma lipids were analysed at week 8 and 16. Body composition and adipocyte size were evaluated at study end. Atherosclerosis was evaluated at week 12 (ultrasound) and at termination (en face histology). Herring-fed mice had a higher proportion of long-chain n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids in the hepatic triacylglycerides (TAG) and phospholipid fractions. The herring-fed mice had increased body weight (P=0.007), and reduced epididymal adipocyte size (P=0.009), despite similar food intake and body composition as the beef-fed mice. The herring-fed mice had lower plasma TAG and very-low-density lipoprotein (VLDL)-cholesterol concentrations throughout the study (TAG; P=0.0012 and 0.004, VLDL-cholesterol; P=0.006 and 0.041, week 8 and 16, respectively). At week 16, the herring-fed had higher plasma concentrations of HDL-cholesterol (P=0.004) and less atherosclerotic lesions in the aortic arch (P=0.007) compared with the beef-fed mice. In conclusion, dietary herring in comparison to beef markedly improved vascular health in this mouse model, suggesting that herring provides an added value beyond its content of macronutrients.
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| 2. |
- Gan, Li-Ming, 1969, et al.
(författare)
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Amplitude and velocity of mitral annulus motion in rabbits.
- 2004
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Ingår i: Echocardiography (Mount Kisco, N.Y.). - : Wiley. - 0742-2822 .- 1540-8175. ; 21:4, s. 313-7
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- OBJECTIVE: During recent years, the amplitude and the maximal systolic velocity of the mitral annulus motion (MAM) have been established as indices of the left ventricular systolic function and the maximal diastolic velocity of the annulus motion has been suggested as an index of diastolic function. The main aims of the present study were to investigate the feasibility of these techniques in rabbits and to investigate age-related changes concerning these variables. METHODS: Twenty-one New Zealand white rabbits were investigated by echocardiographic M-mode and pulsed tissue Doppler. One subgroup (I) included 11 still-growing, 3.0 +/- 0.2 month-old, animals and another group (II) included 10 young grown up rabbits, 12.1 +/- 1.5 months old. RESULTS: The amplitude (4.8 +/- 0.6 and 3.5 +/- 0.3 mm, respectively) and maximal systolic (98 +/- 14 and 66 +/- 7 mm/s, respectively) and diastolic (111 +/- 21 and 80 +/- 12 mm/s, respectively) velocities of the MAM were significantly (P < 0.001) higher in group I than in group II, despite a bigger heart in the animals in the latter group. A coefficient of variation of <5% was found for both inter- and intraobserver variability for both amplitude and velocities. CONCLUSIONS: The amplitude and velocities of MAM are easily recorded in rabbits with excellent reproducibility and the changes with age seem to be very similar to those in humans. These noninvasive M-mode and tissue Doppler methods are therefore suitable for the investigation of left ventricular function in experimental studies in rabbits.
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| 3. |
- Gan, Li-Ming, 1969, et al.
(författare)
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Coronary Flow Reserve from Mouse to Man-from Mechanistic Understanding to Future Interventions
- 2013
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Ingår i: Journal of Cardiovascular Translational Research. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1937-5387 .- 1937-5395. ; 6:5, s. 715-728
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Myocardial ischemia is recognized as an important mechanism increasing the risk for cardiovascular events in both symptomatic and asymptomatic patients. In addition to obstructive coronary diseases, systemic inflammation, macro- and microvascular function are additional important mechanisms contributing to the ischemic myocardium. Accumulating evidence indicates that coronary flow reserve (CFR) is a quantitative measurement of ischemia including integrated information on structure and function of the coronary artery at all levels. Not surprisingly, CFR has been shown to confer strong prognostic value for hard cardiovascular (CV) events in a number of relevant patient cohorts. Using high-resolution imaging, it is now possible to study coronary arteries from mouse to man. Therefore, CFR may be an important translational tool to risk-stratify patients and to perform both preclinical and clinical proof-of-concept studies before investing in large-scale outcome trials, thus improving the translational value for novel CV targets.
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| 4. |
- Gan, Li-Ming, 1969, et al.
(författare)
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Non-invasive imaging of coronary arteries in living mice using high-resolution echocardiography
- 2004
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Ingår i: Scand Cardiovasc J. - : Informa UK Limited. - 1401-7431. ; 38:2, s. 121-6
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- OBJECTIVE: In vivo mouse coronary artery circulation is still largely unknown. We demonstrate here in vivo coronary flow velocity profiles in anesthesized mice using a novel high-resolution ultrasound technique. METHODS: Seven 10-week-old C57/Bl6 mice were used for ultrasonographic examination under anesthesia. An Acuson Sequoia 512 echocardiograph with a Microson 15L8 transducer was used. Left coronary artery (LCA) anatomy was mapped in situ. RESULTS: The proximal, mid LCA and its anterior (A-LCA) and lateral (L-LCA) branches could be visualized and coronary flow velocity was reproducibly recorded in all animals. Peak flow velocity was 31.3 +/- 1.5 and 20.7 +/- 2.3 cm/s in the mid LCA and L-LCA branches, respectively. Mean flow velocity was 18.4 +/- 0.7 and 13.8 +/- 1.5 cm/s in the respective vessels. Both the peak and mean flow velocities were higher in the mid LCA than in the distal part of the L-LCA (p = 0.006 and 0.01, respectively). Measurements of the velocity time integral show percentage systolic flow was 15.7 +/- 1.6% and 10.2 +/- 1.4% in the mid LCA and L-LCA, respectively. CONCLUSION: Despite the extremely high heart rate in mice, there are striking similarities between murine and human coronary flow velocity profiles. The presented technique and findings confirm the relevance of the mouse as an animal model in cardiovascular research.
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| 5. |
- Gan, Li-Ming, 1969, et al.
(författare)
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Non-invasive real-time imaging of atherosclerosis in mice using ultrasound biomicroscopy
- 2007
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Ingår i: Atherosclerosis. - : Elsevier BV. - 0021-9150. ; 190:2, s. 313-20
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- There are increasing needs to develop imaging techniques to study in vivo vascular morphology and function in various mouse models of atherosclerosis. Using ultrasound biomicroscopy (UBM), we developed and validated a new imaging protocol to follow lesion progression in atherosclerotic mice. ApoE and LDL receptor double knockout mice (DKO) with various degree of atherosclerosis and normal control mice were imaged at the level of the ascending aorta using UBM. Average plaque thickness, as well as plaque area were delineated in the short-axis images, and were subsequently compared with histological measurements. We showed that plaque area at this vascular site was closely correlated to total plaque burden from en face measurement (p<0.0001). UBM-measured plaque thickness and area correlated with indices for histology measures from the same vascular region (p<0.0001 respective p<0.0001). Furthermore, in 16 DKO mice aged from 32 to 35 weeks, UBM showed significantly weekly increases of IMT in the ascending aorta from 0.106+/-0.108 mm at 32 weeks of age to 0.256+/-0.345 mm at 35 weeks of age (p=0.0002). In conclusion, this novel imaging protocol provides us with a non-invasive, accurate and inexpensive way to follow lesion progression in mice in vivo.
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| 6. |
- Grönros, Julia, 1978, et al.
(författare)
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Proximal to middle left coronary artery flow velocity ratio, as assessed using color Doppler echocardiography, predicts coronary artery atherosclerosis in mice.
- 2006
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Ingår i: Arteriosclerosis, thrombosis, and vascular biology. - 1524-4636. ; 26:5, s. 1126-31
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- BACKGROUND: We aimed to establish a completely noninvasive technique to assess coronary artery atherosclerosis in living mice using proximal to middle left coronary artery (LCA) velocity ratio as assessed with color Doppler echocardiography (CDE). METHODS AND RESULTS: Three groups of apolipoprotein E/low-density lipoprotein receptor double-knockout (apoE/LDLr dko) mice 10, 40, and 80 weeks of age and 3 additional age-matched groups of C57BL/6 mice were examined under anesthesia. Coronary flow velocity in proximal (Vprox) and middle part (Vmid) of LCA was measured using CDE. A 40-MHz ultrasound biomicroscope (UBM) was used to visualize lumen and outer vessel diameter in the proximal LCA. Flow velocity in the proximal LCA increased significantly with age and remained constant in the middle part in the apoE/LDLr dko mice, whereas velocities at both the sites remained unchanged in C57 mice. CDE-assessed flow velocity ratio (Vprox/Vmid) increased significantly with age in apoE/LDLr dko mice (P=0.0055) and correlated significantly to percentage wall thickness, as assessed by UBM (P=0.0044; r=0.65) and histology (P=0.0002; r=0.78). Wall thickness increased with age in the apoE/LDLr dko mice as measured with UBM (P=0.0093; r=0.49), which was also confirmed with histology (P<0.0001; r=0.73). CONCLUSIONS: CDE and UBM are useful noninvasive tools to quantify mouse coronary artery atherosclerosis in vivo.
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| 7. |
- Haugen, Espen, 1973, et al.
(författare)
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Parallel gene expressions of IL-6 and BNP during cardiac hypertrophy complicated with diastolic dysfunction in spontaneously hypertensive rats.
- 2007
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Ingår i: International journal of cardiology. - : Elsevier BV. - 1874-1754 .- 0167-5273. ; 115:1, s. 24-8
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- There is increasing evidence showing that inflammation is involved in heart failure. However, heart failure may differ greatly due to different aetiologies. The role of inflammation in hypertensive heart failure, particularly in the early stage of cardiac dysfunction, has not been studied completely. This study aims at finding out whether inflammation is involved in the early stage of heart dysfunction due to hypertension. METHODS: Ten spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR) and ten age-matched Wistar rats were used. Cardiac morphology and function, as well as coronary flow reserve, were examined by echocardiography. mRNAs for cytokines and brain natriuretic peptide were determined by RT-PCR. RESULTS: The results demonstrate cardiac hypertrophy with increased heart/body weight ratio in SHR. Echocardiographic examination has shown that SHR developed diastolic heart dysfunction as determined by tissue Doppler without decrease in systolic function. In heart biopsies, there were increased mRNA levels for interleukin-6 and brain natriuretic peptide whereas decreased mRNA for interleukin-2, beta adrenergic receptor, interferon and NFkb in SHR as compared to WKY group. Coronary flow remained unchanged in both groups. CONCLUSION: SHR developed cardiac hypertrophy complicated with diastolic heart dysfunction with increased expression of brain natriuretic peptide, down-regulation of beta adrenergic receptors and simultaneous up-regulation of IL-6, which indicates active proinflammatory process as, at least partly, underlying mechanism during the early stage when cardiac hypertrophy associated with diastolic dysfunction occurs.
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| 8. |
- Hägg Samuelsson, Ulrika, 1973, et al.
(författare)
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Voluntary physical exercise and coronary flow velocity reserve: a transthoracic colour Doppler echocardiography study in spontaneously hypertensive rats
- 2005
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Ingår i: Clin Sci (Lond). - 0143-5221. ; 109:3, s. 325-34
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- In the present study, we have developed and demonstrated a coronary artery imaging protocol in rats using transthoracic high-frequency CDE (colour Doppler echocardiography) to investigate the potential direct effects of exercise on CFVR (coronary flow velocity reserve). SHR (spontaneously hypertensive rats) performed voluntary exercise for 6 weeks. Rats were then submitted to ultrasonographic examination and CFVR measurements. The LAD (left anterior descending coronary artery) was visualized using transthoracic CDE in a modified parasternal long-axis view. Doppler measurement was made in mid-LAD during baseline and adenosine-induced hyperaemic condition. Gene and protein expression in cardiac tissue were studied using real-time PCR and immunohistochemistry. Adenosine infusion significantly (P<0.001, as determined by ANOVA) decreased HR, without affecting blood pressure in anaesthetized SHR. A significantly greater adenosine dose-dependent response was seen in exercised rats compared with controls (P=0.02, as determined by ANOVA). The baseline flow velocity in mid-LAD was 0.33+/-0.06 and 0.41+/-0.14 m/s in the exercised and control animals respectively (P value was not significant). The maximum adenosine-induced response was reached at a dose of 140 microg.kg-1 of body weight.min-1, and CFVR averaged at 2.6+/-0.53 and 1.5+/-0.24 in exercised and control animals respectively (P<0.01). Gene expression of CuZnSOD was up-regulated by 21% in exercised animals compared with controls (1.1+/-0.16 compared with 0.89+/-0.09; P<0.01), whereas eNOS expression was unchanged. In conclusion, CFVR in rats can be non-invasively assessed using CDE with high feasibility. Physical exercise is associated with improved CFVR and antioxidative capacity in SHR.
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| 9. |
- Johansson, Maria E, 1977, et al.
(författare)
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Haemodynamically significant plaque formation and regional endothelial dysfunction in cholesterol-fed ApoE-/- mice
- 2005
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Ingår i: Clinical Science. - 0143-5221 .- 1470-8736. ; 108:6, s. 531-8
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Flow-mediated vasodilation is suggested as one of the mechanisms involved in arterial expansive remodelling, which is thought to be a defence mechanism in atherogenesis. In the present study, we tested the hypothesis that lumen obstructive plaque formation is associated with failure of NO (nitric oxide)-dependent vasodilation in conduit vessels. Cardiac function and aortic root flow velocities were assessed using high-resolution echocardiography and two-dimensional-guided pulsed Doppler in ApoE(-/-) (apolipoprotein E-deficient) mice fed a standard or high-cholesterol diet. Endothelial function in the proximal and mid-descending aortic regions was studied using a myograph technique. Flow velocity at the aortic root of cholesterol-fed ApoE(-/-) mice was significantly increased as a result of lumen narrowing, detected via histological analysis. NO-dependent vasodilatory responses were selectively impaired in the atherosclerosis-prone vascular regions in cholesterol-fed ApoE(-/-) mice. In conclusion, consumption of a high-cholesterol diet results in lumen obstructive plaque formation in ApoE(-/-) mice, which significantly alters aortic root haemodynamics. This phenomenon is associated with impaired NO-dependent vasodilation in vessel segments known to be prone to atherosclerosis.
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| 10. |
- Redfors, Björn, et al.
(författare)
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Contrast echocardiography reveals apparently normal coronary perfusion in a rat model of stress-induced (Takotsubo) cardiomyopathy.
- 2014
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Ingår i: European heart journal cardiovascular Imaging. - : Oxford University Press (OUP). - 2047-2412 .- 2047-2404. ; 15:2, s. 152-157
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Stress-induced cardiomyopathy (SIC) is an important differential diagnosis to acute myocardial infarction (AMI) that is associated with significant morbidity and mortality. The typical hallmark of SIC is left-ventricular apical akinesia but preserved function in basal segments. Catecholamines are postulated to play an important role in SIC but the precise pathophysiology is incompletely understood. Whether myocardial perfusion of the affected segments is impaired in SIC has been debated and remains unknown.
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