Cardiovascular Lesions in Experimental Copper Deficiency in Chickens

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Abstract
The cardiovascular lesions in young chickens deprived of copper were studied in male broiler chickens fed a milk-sucrose diet from one day of age. Over 50% of the birds died of arterial rupture after having been fed the test diet for 4 to 6 weeks. Gross lesions included massive abdominal hemorrhage and hemopericardium. Degenerative lesions in the tunica media were observed most consistently in the abdominal aorta, but were also present in sections of the thoracic aorta, brachiocephalic artery, carotid artery, sciatic artery, and small visceral arteries. In addition to aneurysm formation and spontaneous rupture, lesions obseved were disruption, fragmentation, and loss of elastic fibers, intramural hemorrhage, medial fibrosis, and deposition of an amorphous eosinophilic material in the proliferating connective tissue. The intramural hemorrhage appeared to be primary to the development of dissecting aneurysms, but was secondary to the degenerative alterations in the tunica media. The hemorrhage appeared to arise from the unsupported vasa vasorum by diapedesis or rhexis. Serial sections through rupture sites demonstrated that rupture of the medial and adventitial tunics preceded breakdown of the intimal tunic. Supplementation of the basal diet with ascorbic acid did not reduce the incidence of arterial rupture.

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