Brycen Allen: Imaging Analysis of the Aorta and Aortic Branches in Mice with Aortic Aneurysms

Aortic aneurysms are permanent dilatations of the aorta that can occur from the aortic root through the abdominal aortic regions. Ultrasonography is the most commonly used imaging tool to detect and quantify aortic aneurysms. Ultrasonography can be used to monitor the progression of aortic diameters in live animals. In addition to ultrasonography, micro Computed Tomography (Micro-CT) is an optimal tool to visualize and construct high-resolution three-dimensional (3D) images. It is also a reliable and reproducible approach for measuring the volume of vessels. My summer project is to (1) measure and compare aortic diameters in live mice using ultrasound, and (2) 3D construction of micro-CT images to overview mouse aortas.