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Updated: Jun 9, 2026

Multimodal Study of Murine Cardiovascular Remodeling: Four-Dimensional Ultrasound and Mass Spectrometry Imaging
Published on: January 10, 2025
Imaging mass spectrometry reveals unique lipid distribution in primary varicose veins
H Tanaka1, N Zaima, N Yamamoto
1Division of Vascular Surgery, Hamamatsu University School of Medicine, 1-20-1 Handayama, Higashi-ku, Hamamatsu 431-3192, Japan.
Background:
The lipid metabolism of varicose veins (VVs) remains unknown. To elucidate the pathogenesis of VV, we utilized the novel technique of imaging mass spectrometry (IMS).
Materials And Methods:
We obtained VV tissues from 10 limbs of 10 VV patients who underwent great saphenous vein stripping. As control vein samples, we harvested segmental vein tissues from 6 limbs of 6 patients with peripheral artery occlusive disease who underwent infra-inguinal bypass with reversed saphenous vein grafting. To identify the localisation of lipid molecules in the VV tissues, we performed matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization IMS (MALDI-IMS). We also performed MS/MS analyses to identify the structure of each molecule.
Results:
We obtained mass spectra directly from control vein tissues and VV tissues and found a unique localisation of lipid molecules in the VV tissues. We localised lysophosphatidylcholine (LPC) (1-acyl 16:0), phosphatidylcholine (PC) (1-acyl 36:4) and sphingomyelin (SM) (d18:1/16:0) at the site of the VV valve.
Conclusion:
MALDI-IMS revealed the distribution of various lipid molecules in normal veins and VVs both. Accumulation of LPC (1-acyl 16:0), PC (1-acyl 36:4) and SM (d18:1/16:0) in the VV tissues suggested that inflammation associated with abnormal lipid metabolism may contribute to the development of VV.
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