Premium
Biochemical characterization of atherosclerotic plaque constituents using FTIR spectroscopy and histology
Author(s) -
Li C.,
Ebenstein D.,
Xu C.,
Chapman J.,
Saloner D.,
Rapp J.,
Pruitt L.
Publication year - 2002
Publication title -
journal of biomedical materials research part a
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.849
H-Index - 150
eISSN - 1552-4965
pISSN - 1549-3296
DOI - 10.1002/jbm.a.10320
Subject(s) - fourier transform infrared spectroscopy , calcification , materials science , histology , spectroscopy , in vivo , characterization (materials science) , infrared spectroscopy , pathology , nuclear magnetic resonance , biomedical engineering , analytical chemistry (journal) , chemistry , biology , optics , medicine , chromatography , nanotechnology , physics , microbiology and biotechnology , organic chemistry , quantum mechanics
Abstract The behavior of vulnerable atherosclerotic plaques is believed to be closely related to plaque composition. There is a need for an effective in vivo technique for examining plaque constituent properties. In this study, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy using attenuated total reflectance (FTIR‐ATR) was used to assess and analyze the biochemical properties of human atherosclerotic plaques. FTIR spectra clearly revealed prominent spectral features corresponding to plaque constituents of interest: the 2930 cm −1 and 2850 cm −1 peaks (indicating the presence of lipids), the 1730 cm −1 peak (lipid esters), the 1550 cm −1 and 1650 cm −1 peaks (fibrous tissues), and the 1100–1000 cm −1 broad phosphate peak (calcification). Spectral data examined on a qualitative basis correlated well with both gross tissue anatomy and histologic features. Gross spatial mappings of tissue sections of both lipidic and calcified plaques were performed. Spectra from various regions of the plaques demonstrated the evolution of lipid peaks, fibrous tissue peaks, and the phosphate calcification band within the plaques. Histologic analysis corroborated the spectral findings in this study. © 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res 64A: 197–206, 2003