The aim of this study was to investigate the multiscale surface roughness characteristics of coronary arteries, to aid in the development of novel biomaterials and bioinspired medical devices. Porcine left anterior descending coronary arteries were dissected ex vivo, and specimens were chemically fixed and dehydrated for testing. Surface roughness was calculated from three-dimensional reconstructed surface images obtained by optical, scanning electron and atomic force microscopy, ranging in magnification from 10× to 5500×. Circumferential surface roughness decreased with magnification, and microscopy type was found to influence surface roughness values. Longitudinal surface roughness was not affected by magnification or microscopy types within the parameters of this study. This study found that coronary arteries exhibit multiscale characteristics. It also highlights the importance of ensuring consistent microscopy parameters to provide comparable surface roughness values.
Keywords: atomic force microscopy; coronary arteries; endothelium; multiscale; scanning electron microscopy; surface roughness.
© 2019 The Authors.