Vascular diseases investigated ex vivo by using Raman, FT-IR and complementary methods.

This work shows the application of vibrational spectroscopy supported by other complementary techniques in analysis of tissues altered by vascular diseases, in particular atherosclerosis. The analysis of atherosclerotic plaque components, as well as label-free imaging of vessels and identification of biochemical markers of endothelial dysfunction are reported. Additionally, the potential of vibrational spectroscopy imaging in following the disease progression (including calcification) and pathological changes in heart valves is described. The presented research shows the effectiveness of techniques used in the biochemical studies of altered tissues and summarizes their capabilities in research on vascular diseases. The scope of the paper is to collect previously published work connected with the application of Raman spectroscopy, FT-IR spectroscopy and complementary methods for the investigation of vascular diseases ex vivo and presenting it in a comprehensive overview.