Mouse strain differential neointimal response in vein grafts and wire-injured arteries.
BACKGROUND
Neointimal development is seen clinically after both vein grafting and balloon catheterization, but may not represent the same pathology under these 2 conditions. This study compared the degree of neointimal hyperplasia after vein grafting or arterial-injury grafts in 2 strains of mice: C57Bl/6 and FVB.


RESULTS
Jugular vein branches were interpositioned as grafts in the femoral artery of syngenic-matched mice, with graft harvest at 30 days. Wire-injured carotid arteries were grafted to the carotid arteries of syngenic-matched mice, with graft harvest at 14 days. Histomorphometry revealed no strain differences in vein grafts in the extent of position-dependent neointimal thickening or lumen cross-sectional area. Both strains showed significantly thicker neointima and less lumen area at the proximal graft site (vs the mid-graft; p<0.05). In contrast, a significantly greater neointimal thickness was found in the wire-injured carotid grafts of FVB mice vs those of C57Bl/6 mice (p<0.05).


CONCLUSIONS
Neointimal formation shows a vessel-dependent, strain-dependent difference, with greater arterial neointimal thickening in FVB mice. These data suggest that different mechanisms operate for arterial-injury- vs vein-graft-associated neointimal development and that the difference has a genetic basis.
Cooley
Brian C
BC
Allen Bradley Medical Sciences Laboratory, Medical College of Wisconsin, 8701 Watertown Plank Road, Milwaukee, WI 53226, USA. bcooley@mcw.edu
D000818:Animals; D002339:Carotid Arteries / Q000473:pathology; D020212:Carotid Artery Injuries; D002404:Catheterization / Q000009:adverse effects*; D001026:Coronary Artery Bypass / Q000009:adverse effects*; D005263:Femoral Artery / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D006965:Hyperplasia / Q000473:pathology; D007601:Jugular Veins / Q000637:transplantation; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D008815:Mice, Inbred Strains; D013045:Species Specificity; D017539:Tunica Intima / Q000293:injuries / Q000473:pathology*