Age-related changes in the basilar artery; Chapter 5 / Angelija Valančiūtė, Devika Gudienė, Rūta Vosyliūtė, Jolita Palubinskienė, and Ingrida Balnytė

ISBN: 978-1-53615-304-0.

Bibliogr.: p. 68-73

Age-related arterial stiffening is a result of blood vessel wall remodeling. Altered extracellular matrix (ECM) architecture and switch of arterial wall smooth muscle cells (SMCs) phenotype have been recognized as a key component of the pre-atherogenic state. In this chapter we described structural age-related changes in the wall of basilar arteries. Basilar arteries were obtained within 24 hours postmortem from 89 human cadavers (44 male and 45 female, ages from 20 to 84 years). Investigation included cases of violent death without obstructive atherosclerotic lesions and history of cerebral blood vessels disease. The study has been carried out by standard histological technique. Detailed morphometric semi-automated image analysis system was applied. Area, perimeter and number of main ECM components collagen and elastic fibers as well number of smooth muscle cells were measured in media of basilar arteries of there age groups. Basilar artery media is composed mostly of collagen, elastic fibers and smooth muscle cells. It is a transitional (mixed) type of the artery, smooth muscle cells or elastic fibers do not predominate in the media. The area of collagen bundles increased, number and perimeter of collagen bundles decreased with age in both genders in the tunica media of human basilar artery. Collagen network structure, judging by in parallel decreasing total perimeter and number of bundles, became less branchy. It is feasible that separate collagen fibers merge and their cross-section area enlarges. [...].