Animal Model Dependent Response to Pentagalloyl Glucose in Murine Abdominal Aortic Injury

<p>Abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAAs) are a local dilation of the aorta and are associated with significant mortality due to rupture and treatment complications. There is a need for less invasive treatments to prevent aneurysm growth and rupture. In this study, we used two experimental murine models to evaluate the potential of pentagalloyl glucose (PGG), which is a polyphenolic tannin that binds to and crosslinks elastin and collagen, to preserve aortic compliance. Animals underwent surgical aortic injury and received 0.3% PGG or saline treatment on the adventitial surface of the infrarenal aorta. Seventeen mice underwent topical elastase injury, and 14 mice underwent topical calcium chloride injury. We collected high-frequency ultrasound images before surgery and at 3–4 timepoints after. There was no difference in the<em> in vivo</em> effective maximum diameter due to PGG treatment for either model. However, the CaCl<sub>2</sub> model had significantly higher Green–Lagrange circumferential cyclic strain in PGG-treated animals (<i>p </i><<i> </i>0.05). While <em>ex vivo</em> pressure-inflation testing showed no difference between groups in either model, histology revealed reduced calcium deposits in the PGG treatment group with the CaCl<sub>2</sub> model. These findings highlight the continued need for improved understanding of PGG’s effects on the extracellular matrix and suggest that PGG may reduce arterial calcium accumulation.</p>