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Objective— We aimed to develop and validate a model of angioplasty and stenting in mice that would allow investigation of the response to stent injury using genetically modified mouse strains. Methods and Results— Aortic segments from either C57BL/6 wild-type or atherosclerotic ApoE-KO mice underwent balloon angioplasty alone or balloon angioplasty and stenting with a 1.25×2.5 mm stainless steel stent. Vessels were carotid-interposition grafted into genetically identical littermate recipients and harvested at 1, 7, 14, or 28 days. In wild-type mice, stenting generated an inflammatory vascular injury response between days 1 to 7, leading to the development of neointimal hyperplasia by day 14, which further increased in area by day 28 leading to the development of in-stent stenosis. Uninjured vessels and vessels injured by balloon angioplasty alone developed minimal neointimal hyperplasia. In stented ApoE-KO mice, neointimal area at 28 days was 30% greater compared with wild-type mice. Conclusions— By reproducing important features of human stenting in atherosclerotic mice, we provide the potential to investigate molecular pathways and evaluate novel therapeutic targets for stent injury and restenosis.

Objectives: Our aim was to determine the effects of high-dose (2 g) nicotinic acid (NA) on progression of atherosclerosis and measures of vascular function.Background: NA raises high-density lipopr...

Nine rabbits were given subcutaneous doses of 7.5 mg of gentamicin/kg every 24 hr, and nine were given 2.5 mg of gentamicin/kg every 8 hr for three weeks or longer. Renal function was evaluated by monitoring of the concentration of creatinine in serum and the rate of clearance of gentamicin from serum. In the animals receiving the 8-hr divided dosage, a deterioration of renal function as early as day 7 was demonstrated by the rate of clearance of gentamicin, and deterioration by day 21 was evidenced by the concentration of creatinine in serum; the renal function of the animals receiving the single daily dose was unchanged. There was no relationship between peak or trough concentrations of gentamicin in serum and the development of nephrotoxicity. The animals receiving the 8-hr dosages had a significantly longer daily duration of exposure to concentrations of greater than or equal to 0.1, greater than or equal to 1.0, greater than or equal to 2.0, and greater than or equal to 3.0 microng of gentamicin/ml in serum than did animals receiving the daily dosage.