Cowen T, Burnstock G
Histochemistry. 1980;66(1):19-34. doi: 10.1007/BF00493242.
Automated quantitative image analysis (QIAF) was used to measure and compare the adrenergic nerve plexuses of 4 blood vessels from the guinea pig, demonstrated by glyoxylic acid fluorescence (GAF). The results showed considerable quantitative variation of plexus density, size of bundles, and numbers of varicosities. A range of alternative procedural and anatomical sources of variability were investigated and assessed. The carotid artery was found to have a dense plexus with more nerves than that of the mesenteric artery; the mesenteric vein and abdominal aorta had sparse plexuses. The carotid artery plexus, despite the density of its nerves, possessed only half the number of varicosities of the mesenteric artery plexus. This sparse varicosity population was shown to have a similar density to the varicosities demonstrated by QIAF in the scattered nerves of the mesenteric vein and abdominal aorta. QIAF confirmed visual estimates of adrenergic plexus density, and was able to demonstrate less obvious differences of nerve density and size, and varicosity populations, between the different plexuses studied. The method is applicable to stretch preparations and transverse sections of many adrenergically innervated tissues.
采用自动定量图像分析（QIAF）对经乙醛酸荧光法（GAF）显示的豚鼠4条血管的肾上腺素能神经丛进行测量和比较。结果显示，神经丛密度、束的大小和膨体数量存在显著的定量差异。研究并评估了一系列其他程序和解剖学上的变异来源。发现颈动脉有密集的神经丛，其神经比肠系膜动脉的多；肠系膜静脉和腹主动脉的神经丛稀疏。颈动脉神经丛尽管神经密集，但其膨体数量仅为肠系膜动脉神经丛的一半。这种稀疏的膨体群显示出与QIAF在肠系膜静脉和腹主动脉散在神经中显示的膨体密度相似。QIAF证实了对肾上腺素能神经丛密度的视觉估计，并能够显示所研究的不同神经丛之间神经密度和大小以及膨体群的不太明显的差异。该方法适用于许多肾上腺素能神经支配组织的拉伸标本和横切面。
