查看文章

Abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAAs) represent a complex degenerative disorder involving chronic aortic wall inflammation and destructive remodeling of structural connective tissue. Studies using human AAA tissues have helped identify a variety of molecular mediators and matrix‐degrading proteinases, which contribute to aneurysm disease, thereby providing a sound foundation for understanding AAAs; however, these human tissue specimens represent only the “end stage” of a long and progressive disease process. Further progress in understanding the pathophysiology of AAAs is therefore dependent in part on the development and application of effective animal models that recapitulate key aspects of the disease. Based on original studies in rats, transient perfusion of the abdominal aorta with porcine pancreatic elastase has provided a reproducible and robust model of AAAs. More recent applications of this …