Animal model of arterial vulnerable plaque for imaging study using balloon-injury method / 实用放射学杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective To establish animal model of arterial vulnerable plaques for molecular imaging study.Methods Fifteen New Zealand white rabbits were randomly divided into high lipid diet+balloon-injury group (A),high lipid diet group (B)and regular diet group (C).Ultrasound (US)and magnetic resonance (MR)imaging were used to dynamically observe the formation of plaque in abdominal aorta. Results were compared with blood lipid level and pathological indicators.Results At 4 weeks,several plaques could be seen in group A.The plaque number increased rapidly and reached to 22 at 12 weeks,which was in parallel with the change of blood lipid. Only a few plaques were observed in group B,while no vulnerable plaque was revealed in group C.All the plaques were judged to be soft plaques on US and MR images,which was consistent with the macrophages gathering and smooth muscle cell proliferating in plaques.Conclusion High lipid diet+balloon-injury is an ideal method to build animal model for molecular imaging of atherosclerotic plaque.