Ian Rowland1, Joseph Heintz2,
1Department of Radiology, University of
Wisconsin, Madison, WI, United States; 2Department of Animal
Sciences, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI, United States; 3Department
of Biological Sciences, University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI, United States
This
study demonstrates that at 4.7T, using a standard 3D gradient echo sequence,
images of vascular casts prepared using established corrosion casting
techniques may be obtained with an isotropic resolution <50um. Immersion
of the casts in aqueous contrast agent enabled 3D representations of the
casts to be generated via the absence of MR signal. Despite the lower
resolution of MR, surface rendering of the data is able to guide SEM studies
to specific regions of interest. Accurate 3D data from vascular casts can be
compared with in vivo angiography studies and may also be used to validate
direct and indirect methods of measuring vascular dimensions.