Journal article
Optimized murine lung preparation for detailed structural evaluation via micro-computed tomography
Journal of applied physiology (1985), Vol.112(1), pp.159-166
01/01/2012
DOI: 10.1152/japplphysiol.00550.2011
PMCID: PMC3290416
PMID: 21817110
Abstract
Utilizing micro-X-ray CT (μCT) imaging, we sought to generate an atlas of in vivo and intact/ex vivo lungs from normal murine strains. In vivo imaging allows visualization of parenchymal density and small airways (15–28 μm/voxel). Ex vivo imaging of the intact lung via μCT allows for improved understanding of the three-dimensional lung architecture at the alveolar level with voxel dimensions of 1–2 μm. μCT requires that air spaces remain air-filled to detect alveolar architecture while in vivo structural geometry of the lungs is maintained. To achieve these requirements, a fixation and imaging methodology that permits nondestructive whole lung ex vivo μCT imaging has been implemented and tested. After in vivo imaging, lungs from supine anesthetized C57Bl/6 mice, at 15, 20, and 25 cmH
2
O airway pressure, were fixed in situ via vascular perfusion using a two-stage flushing system while held at 20 cmH
2
O airway pressure. Extracted fixed lungs were air-dried. Whole lung volume was acquired at 1, 7, 21, and >70 days after the lungs were dried and served as validation for fixation stability. No significant shrinkage was observed: +8.95% change from in vivo to fixed lung (
P
= 0.12), −1.47% change from
day 1
to
day 7
(
P
= 0.07), −2.51% change from
day 1
to
day 21
(
P
= 0.05), and −4.90% change from
day 1
to
day 70
and thereafter (
P
= 0.04). μCT evaluation showed well-fixed alveoli and capillary beds correlating with histological analysis. A fixation and imaging method has been established for μCT imaging of the murine lung that allows for ex vivo morphometric analysis, representative of the in vivo lung.
Details
- Title: Subtitle
- Optimized murine lung preparation for detailed structural evaluation via micro-computed tomography
- Creators
- Dragoş M Vasilescu - Department of Radiology, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IowaLars Knudsen - Institute of Functional and Applied Anatomy, Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany; andMatthias Ochs - Institute of Functional and Applied Anatomy, Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany; andEwald R Weibel - Department of Anatomy, Bern University, Bern, SwitzerlandEric A Hoffman - Department of Radiology, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Publication Details
- Journal of applied physiology (1985), Vol.112(1), pp.159-166
- DOI
- 10.1152/japplphysiol.00550.2011
- PMID
- 21817110
- PMCID
- PMC3290416
- NLM abbreviation
- J Appl Physiol (1985)
- ISSN
- 8750-7587
- eISSN
- 1522-1601
- Publisher
- American Physiological Society; Bethesda, MD
- Language
- English
- Date published
- 01/01/2012
- Academic Unit
- Roy J. Carver Department of Biomedical Engineering; Radiology; Internal Medicine
- Record Identifier
- 9984051572202771
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