AccScience Publishing / GTM / Volume 1 / Issue 1 / DOI: 10.36922/gtm.v1i1.76
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MINI-REVIEW

A mini-review on quantification of atherosclerosis in hypercholesterolemic mice

Hui Chen1 Deborah A. Howatt1 Michael K. Franklin1 Naofumi Amioka1 Hisashi Sawada1,2,3 Alan Daugherty1,2,3* Hong S. Lu1,2,3*
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1 Saha Cardiovascular Research Center, University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky, United States
2 Saha Aortic Center, University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky, United States
3 Department of Physiology, University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky, United States
Global Translational Medicine 2022, 1(1), 76 https://doi.org/10.36922/gtm.v1i1.76
Submitted: 24 April 2022 | Accepted: 2 June 2022 | Published: 14 June 2022
© 2022 by the Authors. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License ( https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ )
Abstract

Atherosclerosis is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in many countries. Mice are the most frequently used animal model to study the pathogenesis and molecular mechanisms of atherosclerosis. En face analyses of the aorta and cross-sections of the aortic root are the two common modes for quantifying the severity of atherosclerosis in mice. This mini-review introduces these two methods, discusses their pros and cons, and provides suggestions to optimize the quantification of atherosclerosis, thereby enhancing rigor and reproducibility in preclinical research.

Keywords
Atherosclerosis
Aorta
En face
Aortic root
Staining
Mouse
Funding
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute of the National Institutes of Health
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Conflict of interest
None.
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Global Translational Medicine, Electronic ISSN: 2811-0021 Published by AccScience Publishing