Neonatal dexamethasone induces premature microvascular maturation of the alveolar capillary network.

Roth-Kleiner, Matthias; Berger, Thomas M.; Tarek, Mojmir R.; Burri, Peter H.; Schittny, Johannes C. (2005). Neonatal dexamethasone induces premature microvascular maturation of the alveolar capillary network. Developmental dynamics, 233(4), pp. 1261-1271. John Wiley & Sons 10.1002/dvdy.20447

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Postnatal glucocorticoid treatment of preterm infants was mimicked by treating newborn rats with dexamethasone (0.1-0.01 microg/g, days 1-4). This regimen has been shown to cause delayed alveolarization. Knowing that microvascular maturation (transformation of double- to single-layered capillary networks in alveolar septa) and septal thinning prevent further alveolarization, we measured septal maturation on electron photomicrographs in treated and control animals. In treated rats and before day 10, we observed a premature nonreversing microvascular maturation and a transient septal thinning, which both appeared focally. In vascular casts of both groups, we observed contacts between the two capillary layers of immature alveolar septa, which were predictive for capillary fusions. Studying serial electron microscopic sections of human lungs, we were able to confirm the postulated fusion process for the first time. We conclude that alveolar microvascular maturation indeed occurs by capillary fusion and that the dexamethasone-induced impairment of alveolarization is associated with focal premature capillary fusion.

Item Type:

Journal Article (Original Article)

Division/Institute:

04 Faculty of Medicine > Pre-clinic Human Medicine > Institute of Anatomy
04 Faculty of Medicine > Pre-clinic Human Medicine > Institute of Anatomy > Functional Anatomy

UniBE Contributor:

Berger, Thomas M., Burri, Peter Hermann, Schittny, Johannes

Subjects:

600 Technology > 610 Medicine & health

ISSN:

1058-8388

Publisher:

John Wiley & Sons

Language:

English

Submitter:

Johannes Schittny

Date Deposited:

01 Sep 2014 14:44

Last Modified:

05 Dec 2022 14:33

Publisher DOI:

10.1002/dvdy.20447

PubMed ID:

15937935

Uncontrolled Keywords:

Lung development, Glucocorticoids, Alveolarization, Capillary fusion

BORIS DOI:

10.7892/boris.50147

URI:

https://boris.unibe.ch/id/eprint/50147

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