title: Quantification of Microvascular Tortuosity during Tumor Evolution Using Acoustic Angiography.
abstract: The recent design of ultra-broadband, multifrequency ultrasound transducers has enabled high-sensitivity, high-resolution contrast imaging, with very efficient suppression of tissue background using a technique called acoustic angiography. Here we perform the first application of acoustic angiography to evolving tumors in mice predisposed to develop mammary carcinoma, with the intent of visualizing and quantifying angiogenesis progression associated with tumor growth. Metrics compared include vascular density and two measures of vessel tortuosity quantified from segmentations of vessels traversing and surrounding 24 tumors and abdominal vessels from control mice. Quantitative morphologic analysis of tumor vessels revealed significantly increased vascular tortuosity abnormalities associated with tumor growth, with the distance metric elevated approximately 14% and the sum of angles metric increased 60% in tumor vessels versus controls. Future applications of this imaging approach may provide clinicians with a new tool in tumor detection, differentiation or evaluation, though with limited depth of penetration using the current configuration.
authors: Joint Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and North Carolina State University, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA.
authors: Sarah E
authors: SE
authors: Shelton
authors: Department of Neuroradiology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA; Biomedical Research Imaging Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA.
authors: Yueh Z
authors: YZ
authors: Lee
authors: Department of Medical Biophysics, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
authors: Mike
authors: M
authors: Lee
authors: Department of Medical Biophysics, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
authors: Emmanuel
authors: E
authors: Cherin
authors: Department of Medical Biophysics, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
authors: F Stuart
authors: FS
authors: Foster
authors: Kitware Medical Imaging, Carrboro, North Carolina, USA.
authors: Stephen R
authors: SR
authors: Aylward
authors: Joint Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and North Carolina State University, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA; Biomedical Research Imaging Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA. Electronic address: padayton@email.unc.edu.
authors: Paul A
authors: PA
authors: Dayton
mesh_terms: D000465:Algorithms; D000792:Angiography / Q000379:methods; D000818:Animals; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000098:blood supply* / Q000150:complications / Q000473:pathology*; D054459:Elasticity Imaging Techniques / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007089:Image Enhancement / Q000379:methods; D007090:Image Interpretation, Computer-Assisted / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D055806:Microvessels / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D009389:Neovascularization, Pathologic / Q000150:complications / Q000473:pathology*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity
keywords: Acoustic angiography; Angiogenesis; Contrast agent; Microbubble; Microvasculature; Superharmonic imaging; Tortuosity; Ultrasound