Abstract #0650

Naumova A, Yarnykh V, Yuan C, Rosenfeld M, Ferguson M

Transgenic mice are widely used as animal models for the study of atherosclerosis. The major challenges for histological MR imaging of atherosclerotic lesions in mice are the very high-resolution requirement, the need to image long vessel segments, and prohibitively long scan time. This study has shown an ability of non-invasively determination of advanced atherosclerotic lesions composition and precise quantification of the major plaque components in the different vascular beds. A time-efficient microimaging protocol for MR histological imaging on mice was developed. Advanced atherosclerotic lesions in ApoE-knockout mice are characterized by high calcification and presence of the large fibrofatty nodules.