VNA

VNA analyzes vascular networks from microcomputed tomography (µCT) scans to quantify vessel diameter and vessel volume within bone structures for studies of angiogenesis in orthopedic research.

Key Features:

• Software Integration: VNA processes µCT data using two Fiji ImageJ modules and a custom MATLAB program.
• Measurements: VNA extracts quantitative vascular metrics including vessel diameter and vessel volume from reconstructed vascular networks.
• Validation and Performance: Validated against in silico models of varying complexity and homogeneity, VNA produced most outcomes with percent error <10% relative to true values.
• Comparison with Existing Tools: Benchmarking against a µCT trabecular analysis software (MicroCT) showed similar volume measurements but large differences in average vessel diameter, with MicroCT overestimating diameter by approximately 650% on heterogeneous models while VNA remained within 1% of true values.
• Robustness to Network Homogeneity: VNA's measurements are insensitive to network homogeneity, maintaining accuracy across homogeneous and heterogeneous vascular models.

Scientific Applications:

• Orthopedic research: Quantitative analysis of angiogenesis during bone repair and regeneration using µCT-derived vessel diameter and volume metrics.
• Method comparison: Benchmarking and comparison of vascular quantification methods against trabecular analysis software such as MicroCT.
• Model validation: Validation of vascular network reconstruction and measurement accuracy using in silico models of varying complexity and homogeneity.

Methodology:

VNA processes µCT scan data through two Fiji ImageJ modules and a custom MATLAB program to generate vascular network metrics.