The assumption of incompressibility has often been applied to the analysis of arterial-wall elasticity; however, the supporting evidence has been incomplete. The present study was designed to explore this problem in greater depth by accurately measuring the changes in tissue volume associated with large, induced strains on 11 thoracic aorta segments excised from dogs. The radial, circumferential, and longitudinal stresses were measured as the artery was subjected to an internal pressure and longitudinal stretch greater than those in vivo. From these data it was possible to calculate the hydrostatic stress. The associated changes in volume of the aortic wall tissue were measured with a specially designed apparatus. The greatest volumetric strain (AV/V) was 0.00165. The bulk moduli obtained by dividing the hydrostatic stresses by the corresponding volume strains averaged 4.44 X 10 8 g/cm 2 . Similar studies were also carried out on the abdominal aorta and the carotid, iliac, and pulmonary arteries. The volumetric strains observed were of the same magnitude. It is concluded that for most practical purposes arteries may be considered incompressible.

The objective of the study was (1) to measure systematically the orientation, morphology, and population density of endothelial nuclei of the canine thoracic aorta and its major branches and (2) to obtain evidence in a chronic in vivo preparation that altered flow patterns do indeed change patterns of nuclear orientation. For this purpose, a segment of the descending thoracic aorta was removed, opened longitudinally, and reclosed to form a tube with a new longitudinal axis 90° from the original vessel axis. The new segment was then sutured back in place. The animals were killed at suitable postoperative periods. Endothelial nuclear patterns were studied from en face photomicrographs of preparations stained with Evans blue dye. Results indicated: (1) In uniform vessel segments, e.g., middle and lower descending thoracic aorta, the nuclei were oriented parallel to the axis of the blood vessel, and the ratio of major to minor axes of the nucleus was large. The flow in these regions is known to be stable. (2) Nonaxial, less-ordered nuclear orientation with smaller ratios of major to minor axes were found in entrance regions of many major arteries and in the ascending aorta. (3) In chronic studies in which the flow pattern was altered, the nuclear pattern realigned in the direction of flow within 10 days after surgery. stresses produced by blood flow in the arterial tree.Previous histologic studies have demonstrated that nuclei of endothelial cells in large arteries are ellipsoidal and are oriented in an orderly fashion with their long axes aligned with the major axis of the vessel. Studies in which the endothelial cell borders have been stained with silver and viewed en face have shown that the cells are also uniform in size, shape, and orientation (4). Variations in size and orientation of endothelial nuclei and the presence of multinucleated cells have been correlated qualitatively with age in rats (5) and in man (6), and severity of atherosclerosis in man (7), exposure to x-rays in rabbits (8), and endothelial regeneration in rabbits Diagram of method for measurement of orientation and the ratio of major to minor axes of endothelial nuclei. A: Arterial segment opened parallel to longitudinal axis of vessel. B: Opened vessel mounted in plane parallel to microscope stage. C: Schematic photomicrograph of endothelial nucleus. i = angle of orientation of major axis of nucleus with reference to longitudinal axis of vessel; a = major axis of nucleus; bminor axis of nucleus.

Ten normal and four transplanted canine jugular vein segments and four human saphenous vein segments were studied to determine the in vitro static elastic properties of venous tissue and their modification by transplantation into the arterial system. Both the intraluminal pressure and the longitudinal force were varied, and the resulting dimensions were recorded photographically. Venous segments manifested a hysteresis response but showed minimum tendency to creep. The pressure-strain relationships were curvilinear with an initial, highly compliant phase over the physiological venous pressure range followed by a relatively noncompliant phase. This transition occurred at lower pressures for jugular segments than it did for saphenous segments. In contrast, comparable-sized canine carotide artery segments did not show this essentially noncompliant phase over the pressure range studied (0 to 200 cm H2O). At comparable pressures and strains, the jugular vein segments were stiffer than the saphenous vein segments in both the circumferential and the longitudinal directions. At comparable strains, the saphenous vein moduli were similar to those in the carotid artery segments. Jugular segments transplanted into arterial circuits became virtually noncompliant and markedly inhomogeneous, with wall thickening and a histologic picture of intimal proliferation. They showed no tendency to "arterialize," that is, they failed to assume either the elastic or the histologic characteristics of arterial tissue.