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Browsing by Author "Unthank, Joseph"
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Item Assessing the hemodynamic contribution of capillaries, arterioles, and collateral arteries to vascular adaptations in arterial insufficiency(Wiley, 2019) Arciero, Julia; Lembcke, Lauren; Franko, Elizabeth; Unthank, Joseph; Mathematical Sciences, School of ScienceObjective There is currently a lack of clarity regarding which vascular segments contribute most significantly to flow compensation following a major arterial occlusion. This study uses hemodynamic principles and computational modeling to demonstrate the relative contributions of capillaries, arterioles, and collateral arteries at rest or exercise following an abrupt, total, and sustained femoral arterial occlusion. Methods The vascular network of the simulated rat hindlimb is based on robust measurements of blood flow and pressure in healthy rats from exercise and training studies. The sensitivity of calf blood flow to acute or chronic vascular adaptations in distinct vessel segments is assessed. Results The model demonstrates that decreasing the distal microcirculation resistance has almost no effect on flow compensation, while decreasing collateral arterial resistance is necessary to restore resting calf flow following occlusion. Full restoration of non‐occluded flow is predicted under resting conditions given all chronic adaptations, but only 75% of non‐occluded flow is restored under exercise conditions. Conclusion This computational method establishes the hemodynamic significance of acute and chronic adaptations in the microvasculature and collateral arteries under rest and exercise conditions. Regardless of the metabolic level being simulated, this study consistently shows the dominating significance of collateral vessels following an occlusion.Item Major Collateral Vessels Develop from Pre-existing Small Arteries through RAC2/NOX2 Independent Mechanisms(2009-03-18T18:45:14Z) DiStasi, Matthew Robert; Unthank, JosephThere is no consensus on which vascular segment or what size of vessels is most important in the process of collateral growth, the degree to which these vessels can enlarge, or the mechanisms that mediate collateral vessel expansion and its impairment. Chapter I identifies the major collateral vessels that develop in response to femoral arterial occlusion in the pig, rat, and mouse hindlimbs for comparison to humans. Pre-existent small named arteries enlarged ~2-3-fold to become the major collateral vessels in each species, these major collaterals displayed characteristics similar to large arteries experiencing flow-mediated outward remodeling, and important differences in vascular wall thickness were observed between rodents and pigs. Chapter II utilized Rac2-/- and Nox2-/- mice to investigate the hypothesis that Nox2-NAD(P)H oxidase is required for major collateral growth subsequent to femoral arterial occlusion. Previous studies suggest bone marrow cell (BMC)-derived reactive oxygen species (ROS) produced by the Nox2 subunit of NAD(P)H oxidase plays an important role in neovascularization and recovery of hindlimb perfusion subsequent to femoral arterial occlusion; but did not investigate collateral growth. The hematopoietic cell restricted protein Rac2 has been shown to bind to and activate Nox2-NAD(P)H oxidase and Rac2-/- and Nox2-/- leukocytes display impaired ROS related functions. The data demonstrated that Rac2 and Nox2 are not essential for major collateral growth, but both are important for the recovery of hindlimb perfusion and preservation of distal tissue morphology. Chapter III investigated BMC and antioxidant therapy in the age-related impairment of collateral growth. Aging, like all cardiovascular disease risk factors is associated with elevated ROS and impaired collateral growth. Studies also suggest BMCs promote collateral growth by secreting paracrine factors but elevated ROS may affect the efficacy of BMCs. The data revealed that neither BMC injection nor antioxidant therapy via apocynin enhanced the process of major collateral artery growth in aged mice.