Biomechanical and histomorphometric characterization of the melatonin treatment effect in the carotid artery subjected to hypobaric hypoxia

Rivera, Eugenio; Navarrete, Alvaro; Garcia-Herrera, Claudio; Gordillo, Leonardo; Cerda, Enrique; Celentano, Diego J; Gonzalez-Candia, Alejandro; Herrera, Emilio A

doi:10.3389/fbioe.2025.1554004

ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Bioeng. Biotechnol.

Sec. Biomechanics

Volume 13 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fbioe.2025.1554004

Biomechanical and histomorphometric characterization of the melatonin treatment effect in the carotid artery subjected to hypobaric hypoxia

Provisionally accepted

Eugenio Rivera ^1*

Alvaro Navarrete ¹

Claudio Garcia-Herrera ¹

Leonardo Gordillo ¹

Enrique Cerda ¹

Diego J Celentano ²

Alejandro Gonzalez-Candia ³

Emilio A Herrera ⁴

¹ University of Santiago, Santiago, Chile
² Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Santiago, Santiago Metropolitan Region (RM), Chile
³ Instituto de Ciencias de la Salud, Universidad de O'Higgins, Rancagua, Chile
⁴ University of Chile, Santiago, Santiago Metropolitan Region (RM), Chile

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

This study aims to assess the efficacy of melatonin in mitigating the adverse effects of hypobaric hypoxia on the cardiovascular system of neonatal lambs (30 days old).Two groups were considered for this purpose: (i) Melatonin-treated group (N=5) and (ii) Control group (N=6) without treatment. All subjects were exposed to hypobaric hypoxia during gestation and perinatal periods, with melatonin administered after birth.The study focused on the carotid artery, a known predictor of cardiovascular risk.Biomechanical tests, morphometric, and histological measurements were conducted, and a numerical model was developed based on the biomechanical data. Key findings showed remodeling effects: Firstly, a realignment of collagen fibers towards a longitudinal direction was observed with melatonin treatment, similar to non-hypoxic arteries. Second, changes in residual stress and ex-vivo luminal radius were noted, aiming to reduce wall stress and increase vascular resistance. These changes indicate an antihypertensive response, reducing the effects of increased blood pressure and flow due to hypobaric hypoxia. This study demonstrates that biomechanical and histomorphometric methodologies effectively assess the beneficial effects of melatonin treatment under hypobaric hypoxia exposure.

Keywords: Biomechanics, carotid artery, hypobaric hypoxia, Melatonin, Biomechanical tests, Finite element method

Received: 31 Dec 2024; Accepted: 02 Apr 2025.

Copyright: © 2025 Rivera, Navarrete, Garcia-Herrera, Gordillo, Cerda, Celentano, Gonzalez-Candia and Herrera. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

* Correspondence: Eugenio Rivera, University of Santiago, Santiago, Chile

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