Capillary networks are very dense, hundreds of capillaries passing through any given square millimeter of tissue. This network of microvessels is necessary to supply tissues with oxygen and nutrients. Unfortunately it declines in density with age, for reasons that are not well understood in detail. This likely contributes meaningfully to age-related loss of function, particularly in energy-hungry tissues such as muscles and the brain. Researchers here illustrate that loss of capillary density as observed in the retina – the eyes being a convenient window into that outpost of the central nervous system – correlates with the progression of <a href="https://en.wikipe…
Reduced Capillary Density in the Retina Indicative of the Progression of Neurodegeneration
Capillary networks are very dense, hundreds of capillaries passing through any given square millimeter of tissue. This network of microvessels is necessary to supply tissues with oxygen and nutrients. Unfortunately it declines in density with age, for reasons that are not well understood in detail. This likely contributes meaningfully to age-related loss of function, particularly in energy-hungry tissues such as muscles and the brain. Researchers here illustrate that loss of capillary density as observed in the retina – the eyes being a convenient window into that outpost of the central nervous system – correlates with the progression of <a href="https://en.wikipe…