Histology of aorta sections

Formalin-fixed 2–3 mm aorta pieces were processed in Tissue-TEK® tissue processor (Sakura Finetek USA, Inc., Torrance, CA) overnight and embedded in paraffin. Five-micrometer aorta sections were mounted on positively charged glass slides and were baked overnight to let the tissue attach to the slide and melt paraffin. Then the slides were deparaffinized with xylene following hydration with graded ethanol. Slides with aorta sections were stained for Verhoeff-van Gieson (VVG) (Richard-Allen Scientific, San Diego, CA) to visualize the elastin fibers. Overall tissue morphology was assessed by staining aorta sections with hematoxylin and eosin (H & E).