Features of elastic tissue staining and its arrangement in the wall of human basilar artery.

OBJECTIVES 1. To evaluate the effectiveness of the main elastic tissue staining methods in a. basilaris. 2. To study the arrangement of elastic fibers in human a. basilaris wall. MATERIALS AND METHODS For anatomical material we used a. basilaris removed from cadavers of ten people who died from violent death, their age ranging from 21 to 30 years. We studied histological structure staining by Hematoxylin-Eosin, Orcein, Gomori and Van Gieson methods. The samples were examined under the microscope "Zeiss-Standart 25" and photographed with a MC80DX photocamera. RESULTS The internal elastic lamina was distinctly seen while staining by Hematoxylin-Eosin, Orcein, Gomori and Van Gieson methods. The elastic fibers and muscle cells of the middle layer were hardly distinguished. We found collagen fibers and several elastic fibers in the external layer of the vascular wall. We studied the arrangement of elastic fibers in medial and cranial segments of human a. basilaris wall. CONCLUSIONS Several staining methods have to be provided to differentiate the elastic fibers from collagen fibers and muscle cells in the best way, because only complex staining enables to differentiate one from another. Human a. basilaris has a mixed elastic-muscular structure. The elastic tissue distributes gradually in medial and cranial segments of a. basilaris medial layer. There is thin, sharp, solid and undulate internal elastic lamina in the internal layer. There are elastic fibers, smooth muscle cells and several collagen fibers in the middle layer of the vessel. The external layer of a. basilaris consists of several elastic fibers and the main part is occupied by collagen fibers.