Abstract
Conventional intravital microscopy using a light microscope has been used to investigate the disease mechanisms of hypertension and diabetes at the level of the microcirculation unit. However, this method is limited to the assessment of surface vessels because only a thin layer is in focus while the remainder of the entire thickness is out of focus. On the other hand, X-ray intravital microscopy using a microangiography technique at SPring-8 can visualize both surface and penetrating vessels simultaneously. In in vivo experiments using diabetes model rats, diabetic vascular dysfunction in the small coronary arteries was visualized to evaluate the X-ray intravital microscopy system. At a high spatial resolution comparable to that of a conventional intravital microscope, the system has the ability to provide detailed anatomical information of the rat coronary arteries which is close to that of a human coronary angiogram. We have developed this X-ray intravital microscopy technique to visualize the surface and penetrating coronary arteries in rats as a new preclinical imaging system.
