Fig. 2

Effect of RDN on aortic distensibility and vasorelaxation. a Quantification of aortic distensibility at baseline (n = 6 per group), and 8 weeks after RDN procedure (n = 6 per group) or sham operation (n = 5 per group). Data are based on in vivo measurements of cross section vessel areas. b Representative example of high-resolution black blood cine MRI perpendicular to the ascending aorta. The bar on the right side indicates 5 mm. The circle depicts the cross sectional vessel area of the ascending aorta (arrow). The arrowhead points to the superior caval vein. ED end diastole, ES end systole. Values are mean ± SEM. SD baseline vs. SD-sham, p = 0.51 (n.s.); SD-sham vs. SD-RDN, p = 0.23 (n.s.); ApoE^−/− baseline vs. ApoE^−/−-sham, p = 0.07 (n.s.); *p < 0.05, **p < 0.01