Lupus Center of Excellence, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15261, USA.
Clin Transl Sci. 2008 May;1(1):62-6. doi: 10.1111/j.1752-8062.2008.00014.x.
To determine the relative contributions of aging and atherosclerosis to vascular stiffness, we studied aortic stiffness, plaque, and elastin in 8-, 16-, 25-, and 34-week-old male ApoE-KO and C57BL/6J control mice (N = 48). Stiffness increased gradually in both strains up to 25 weeks (p < 0.05), and dramatically between 25 and 34 weeks in ApoE-KO (p < 0.001). Aging ApoE-KO demonstrated increased plaque (p = 0.02), medial thickening (p < 0.001), and severe elastin fragmentation (p < 0.001). We conclude that the contribution of aging to vascular stiffness is relatively minor compared with the influence of atherosclerosis. However, the effect of atherosclerosis on stiffness is significant only with advanced stages of plaque formation.
为了确定衰老和动脉粥样硬化对血管僵硬的相对贡献,我们研究了 8 周、16 周、25 周和 34 周龄雄性 ApoE-KO 和 C57BL/6J 对照小鼠的主动脉僵硬、斑块和弹性蛋白(N = 48)。在两种品系中,僵硬程度都逐渐增加到 25 周(p < 0.05),而在 ApoE-KO 中则在 25 周到 34 周之间急剧增加(p < 0.001)。衰老的 ApoE-KO 表现出斑块增加(p = 0.02)、中膜增厚(p < 0.001)和严重的弹性蛋白碎片化(p < 0.001)。我们得出结论,与动脉粥样硬化的影响相比,衰老对血管僵硬的贡献相对较小。然而,动脉粥样硬化对僵硬的影响只有在斑块形成的晚期才显著。