A study of hypertension induced nanoscale viscoelastic dysfunction of murine cardiovascular tissues

McDougall, Garrett (2018) A study of hypertension induced nanoscale viscoelastic dysfunction of murine cardiovascular tissues. Masters thesis, Memorial University of Newfoundland.

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Abstract

Arterial stiffness plays a pivotal role in the pathogenesis and progression of hypertension. Similarly, pathologies of the left ventricle can manifest as a consequence of hypertension. There is currently limited information regarding the impact of hypertension on the nanoscale viscoelastic behaviors of cardiovascular tissues. Using atomic force microscopy (AFM), we investigated viscoelasticity amongst vascular and cardiac tissues. AFM based measurements revealed viscoelastic distinctions between the differential layers of arterial vessels in hypertensive compared to normotensive rats in both the thoracic and abdominal aorta. These minimal nanoindentation studies identify impaired elasticity and energy dissipation throughout vasculature in the hypertensive state. Subtle changes in the epicardium and endocardium of the left and right ventricles were also found to exist, and such changes may be related to greater levels of fibrosis in cardiac tissue in hypertensive animals.

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