Department of Human Morphology, University of Insubria, Varese, Italy.
Micron. 2010 Jul;41(5):532-6. doi: 10.1016/j.micron.2010.01.006. Epub 2010 Feb 11.
In recent years, experimental and clinical evidence has been provided regarding endothelial dysfunction and its contribution to the inflammatory process leading to atherosclerotic plaque formation. All the techniques employed direct to the study of endothelial dysfunction, however usually require isolation of endothelial cells and therefore tissue manipulation and destruction, with subsequent loss of information regarding morphology and topographical distribution of the lesions. By means of scanning electron microscopy (SEM), we have investigated the characteristics of the endothelial layer in carotid specimens obtained from subjects undergoing carotid endarterectomy. Carotid specimens obtained from 6 patients undergoing carotid endarterectomy for stenosis> or =70% were fixed, prepared and examined by use of SEM in a direct mode. All the plaque specimens showed increased thickness of subendothelial connective tissue with respect to post-mortem tissue obtained from an healthy subject. Endothelial layers were typically detached from the basal lamina surface and infiltrating cells (mainly erythrocytes and, possibly, monocytes) could be identified. Endothelial cells in proximity of the plaques had irregular shape, with prominent nuclei. In several areas, the endothelial layer was completely absent and basal lamina completely uncovered. In the present study, by using SEM analysis, the morphological features of dysfunctional endothelium in human carotid plaques were extensively documented at the ultrastructural level. SEM is a powerful investigational technique which allows tridimensional examination of specimens without disruption of the originary morphology.
近年来，已有实验和临床证据表明内皮功能障碍及其在导致动脉粥样硬化斑块形成的炎症过程中的作用。所有用于研究内皮功能障碍的技术都直接指向内皮细胞的研究，但通常需要分离内皮细胞，因此需要进行组织操作和破坏，从而丧失了关于病变的形态和拓扑分布的信息。我们通过扫描电子显微镜（SEM）研究了从接受颈动脉内膜切除术的患者中获得的颈动脉标本中内皮层的特征。对 6 名因狭窄>或=70%而行颈动脉内膜切除术的患者的颈动脉标本进行固定、准备，并以直接模式使用 SEM 进行检查。所有斑块标本均显示，与从健康受试者获得的死后组织相比，内皮下结缔组织的厚度增加。内皮层通常从基底膜表面分离，并且可以识别出浸润细胞（主要是红细胞，可能还有单核细胞）。靠近斑块的内皮细胞形状不规则，细胞核突出。在多个区域，内皮层完全缺失，基底膜完全暴露。在本研究中，通过 SEM 分析，在超微结构水平上广泛记录了人颈动脉斑块中功能失调的内皮细胞的形态特征。SEM 是一种强大的研究技术，允许在不破坏原始形态的情况下对标本进行三维检查。
