Collagen Fiber Angle Quantification of Carotid Arteries From Fibulin-5 Null Mice

Recent studies have revealed that carotid arteries from fibulin-5 (fbln5) null mice exhibit altered biomechanical and microstructural properties [1–2]. While the previous studies outline quantitative differences in mechanical properties of arteries from fbln5 null and wildtype mice, physical microstructural differences have yet to be quantified. Measurement of microstructural parameters will provide a crucial link between previously quantified mechanical properties and biological effects of knocking out the fbln5 gene. Characterizing microstructural properties will also provide experimental data to validate structurally-motivated constitutive relations and growth and remodeling models [3–4]. In this study, we quantified collagen fiber orientation in carotid arteries from fbln5 null and wildtype mice; collagen in mouse carotid arteries were imaged using multiphoton microscopy and analyzed using a fast Fourier transform algorithm.