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Updated: Jun 12, 2026
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Creation of a Rodent Model of Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm by Blocking Adventitial Vasa Vasorum Perfusion
Published on: November 8, 2017
Aortic length changes during abdominal aortic aneurysm formation, expansion and stabilisation in a rat model
S Michineau1, J Dai, M Gervais
1CNRS EAC 7054, Centre de Recherches Chirurgicales Dominique Chopin, University Paris, 12 Val de Marne, 8 Rue du Général Sarrail, 94010 Créteil Cedex, France.
Summary
Aortic aneurysm length increases with diameter during formation and expansion, driven by extracellular matrix injury. Therapies targeting aneurysm diameter did not always preserve this length-diameter correlation.
Area of Science:
- Vascular Biology
- Biomedical Engineering
- Extracellular Matrix Dynamics
Background:
- Abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) progression involves complex extracellular matrix (ECM) remodeling.
- The relationship between ECM destruction/reconstruction balance and AAA diameter may influence aortic lengthening.
Purpose of the Study:
- To document aortic lengthening during AAA development.
- To correlate aortic length changes with diameter changes.
- To investigate how therapies affecting AAA diameter influence aortic length.
Main Methods:
- Measurements of aortic diameter and length in 308 rats during AAA development.
- Assessment of ECM modulation via endovascular strategies including Vascular Smooth Muscle Cell (VSMC) seeding, and overexpression of TIMP-1, PAI-1, and TGF-beta1.
Main Results:
- Aortic length significantly correlated with diameter during AAA formation and expansion.
- Overexpression of TIMP-1 and PAI-1 reduced aortic lengthening, implicating matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) and the plasmin pathway.
- TGF-beta1 controlled length in formed AAAs, while VSMC seeding did not, though both limited diameter expansion. The length-diameter correlation was lost post-therapy.
Conclusions:
- AAA lengthening is linked to ECM degradation driven by MMPs activated via the plasmin pathway.
- The correlation between aortic length and diameter increases is not consistently maintained, especially after therapeutic interventions.
