Cross-Sectional Shape of Rat Mesenteric Arterioles at Branching Studied by Confocal Laser Microscopy

Abstract

This study was aimed to investigate the cross-sectional shape of mesenteric arterioles at branching, using confocal laser microscopy. Wistar rats (8 weeks, male) were anesthetized with thiobutabarbital sodium. Blood flow and microvascular network in the mesentery were observed using video microscopy. The rat intestine with mesentery was extracted and the intestinal vasculature was perfused with Krebs-Ringer and then fixed with paraformaldehyde under a static pressure of 100mmHg. A section of mesentery was isolated from the intestine, and spread up to the in vivo geometry based on the intravital microscopic observation. The mesentery section was stained with tetramethyl rhodamine isothiocyanate (TRITC)-phalloidin. The samples were observed under a confocal laser microscope. The cross-sectional image was re-sliced to measure the cross-sectional area and major/minor axes of the best fitting ellipse. The aspect ratio was defined in terms of the minor/major diameter ratio. The extended focus image of mesenteric arterioles showed that the cross-sectional shape was not circular but elliptic-like. The cross-sectional area of the parent vessel decreased from proximal to distal positions. The mean aspect ratio of the parent vessel was approximately 0.5, while that of the branching vessel was approximately 0.8. The flattened shape and variation of the cross-sectional area of arterioles requires some correction of in vivo data of the two-dimensional mesenteric microvasculature obtained using intravital microscopy.