SELECTIVE IN VIVO VISUALIZATION OF COLLAGEN & ELASTIN BY MPM

这个子项目是利用由NIH/NCRR资助的中心拨款提供的资源的许多研究子项目之一。子项目和调查员(PI)可能从另一个NIH来源获得了主要资金，因此可能会出现在其他CRISE条目中。列出的机构是针对中心的，而不一定是针对调查员的机构。血管的力学性质是决定压力-流量关系、脉搏波在血管中的传播速度、管壁中的应力分布以及通过动脉壁的质量传输现象的重要因素。血管的机械性能来源于胶原和弹性蛋白纤维、平滑肌细胞和基质。在本方案中，我们将确定冠脉血管力学特性的微观结构基础。我们将结合冠状动脉的三轴力学测试(充气、拉伸和扭转)，同时测定胶原和弹性蛋白的结构。我们将使用双光子激发荧光(TPEF)和二次谐波(SHG)显微镜作为一种高分辨率的生物成像技术，选择性地监测胶原和弹性蛋白在不同物理负荷条件下的结构变化。通过使用光谱测量确定来自胶原和弹性蛋白的信号来源，允许通过光谱过滤的方法分离这些动脉组织成分，并生成高对比度的血管图像。本研究将为观察到的血管力学性质奠定微观结构基础，为病理诊断提供工具。

This subproject is one of many research subprojects utilizing the resources provided by a Center grant funded by NIH/NCRR. The subproject and investigator (PI) may have received primary funding from another NIH source, and thus could be represented in other CRISP entries. The institution listed is for the Center, which is not necessarily the institution for the investigator. The mechanical properties of a blood vessel are important determinants of the pressure-flow relationship, the speed of pulse waves in the vessels, the stress distribution in the vessel wall, and the phenomena of mass transport through the arterial wall. The mechanical properties of blood vessels are derived from collagen and elastin fibers, smooth muscle cells, and ground substances. In the present proposal, we will determine the micro-structural basis for the mechanical properties of coronary blood vessel. We will combine tri-axial mechanical testing (inflation, stretch and torsion) of the coronary arteries with the simultaneous determination of collagen and elastin structure. We will use two-photon excited fluorescence (TPEF) and second-harmonic generation (SHG) microscopy as a high-resolution biological imaging technique to selectively monitor the structural changes of collagen and elastin in response to different physical loading conditions. Determination of the origin of signal from collagen and elastin by using spectral measurements allows the isolation of these arterial tissue components by means of spectral filtering, and generates high-contrast images of the vessels. This research will lay a micro-structural foundation for the observed mechanical properties of blood vessels which may serve as a tool for diagnosis in pathology.