Atherosclerosis and acute arterial thrombosis in rabbits : a model using balloon desendothelization without dietary intervention

• Main Author: Picon, Paulo Dornelles
• Publication Date: 1997
• Other Authors: Gonçalves, Sandro Cadaval, Wainstein, Marco Vugman, Costa, Andry Fiterman, Mengarda, Claudia Vieira, Machado, R.P., Berlim, Gustavo Levacov, Edelweiss, Marcia, Edelweiss, Maria Isabel Albano, Ribeiro, Jorge Pinto
• Format: Article
• Language: eng
• Source: Repositório Institucional da UFRGS
• Download full: http://hdl.handle.net/10183/21222
• topic: Aterosclerose; Trombose coronária; Endotélio vascular; Angioplastia; Coelhos; Endothelium; Histamine; Russell's viper venom; Coronary artery disease

Acute thrombosis can be induced in rabbits by a triggering protocol using Russell’s viper venom and histamine given after 8 months of a 1% cholesterol diet and balloon desendothelization. In the present study, we tested the hypothesis that aortic desendothelization performed 4 months before the triggering protocol without a high cholesterol diet is a highly effective and less expensive way of producing arterial atherosclerosis and thrombosis. Nineteen male New Zealand white rabbits on a normal diet were studied. The control group (N = 9) received no intervention during the 4-month observation period, while the other group (N = 10) was submitted to aortic balloon desendothelization using a 4F Fogarty catheter. At the end of this period, all animals were killed 48 h after receiving the first dose of the triggering treatment. Eight of 10 rabbits (80%) in the balloon-trauma group presented platelet-rich arterial thrombosis while none of the animals in the control group had thrombus formation (P<0.01). Thus, this model, using balloon desendothelization without dietary manipulation, induces arterial atherosclerosis and thrombosis and may provide possibilities to test new therapeutic approaches.