Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
University of Nebraska - Lincoln
Biomedical Engineering and Bioengineering
Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research
Articles 1 - 1 of 1
Full-Text Articles in Engineering
Blood Flow Regulates Atherosclerosis Progression And Regression, Morgan A. Schake
Blood Flow Regulates Atherosclerosis Progression And Regression, Morgan A. Schake
Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research
Atherosclerosis is the most prevalent pathology of cardiovascular disease with no known cure. Despite the many systemic risk factors for atherosclerosis, plaques do not form randomly in the vasculature. Instead, they form around bifurcations and the inner curvature of highly curving arterial segments that contain so-called disturbed blood flow that is low in magnitude and multidirectional over the cardiac cycle. Conversely, straight, non-bifurcated arterial segments that contain moderate-to-high and unidirectional (i.e., normal) blood flow are protected from plaque development. Thus, blood flow is a key regulator of atherosclerosis that may be able to be leveraged to develop new therapeutics. Towards …