Figure 1

Incidence and severity of AngII-induced AAA formation. Vwf−/− and Vwf+/+ mice were continuously infused with AngII (1000 ng/kg/min) for 28 days via subcutaneously implanted osmotic mini-pumps. (A) Kaplan-Meier curves represent the survival in AngII-infused Vwf−/− (grey; n = 16) and Vwf+/+ (black; n = 15) mice. p = 0,083 using the Log-Rank (Mantel-Cox) test. After 28 days, the suprarenal regions were harvested to determine (B) the aneurysm stage of the abdominal aorta (p = 0.439; Chi-square test for trend) (C) AAA incidence (p = 0.445; Fisher’s exact test) and (D) the maximal abdominal aortic diameter (p = 0.301; unpaired t-test). AAA was classified as follows: Stage 0: no dilation; Stage 1: hypertrophy of the adventitia; Stage 2: dilation of the abdominal aorta with or without the presence of a thrombus; Stage 3: pronounced bulbous form of Stage 2; Stage 4: multiple, complex form of Stage 3. Grey lines in graphs of the maximal abdominal aortic diameter and aneurysm staging represent respectively, mean and median values. ns, not statistically significant