Quantitative Contrast-Enhanced Ultrasound Characterization of Perilesional Perfusion and Its Association with CD34-Positive Cell Density in a Rat Model of Hepatic Alveolar Echinococcosis

Zhao, Huan; Xu, Ya; Li, Xinyao; Wang, Zhen; Cheng, Yuhang; Wang, Jingyu; Qu, Changhui; Dong, Dan; Ma, Ting; Dong, Jian

doi:10.3390/pathogens15090987

Open AccessArticle

Quantitative Contrast-Enhanced Ultrasound Characterization of Perilesional Perfusion and Its Association with CD34-Positive Cell Density in a Rat Model of Hepatic Alveolar Echinococcosis

by

Huan Zhao

^1,†,

Ya Xu

^1,†,

Xinyao Li

¹,

Zhen Wang

¹,

Yuhang Cheng

¹,

Jingyu Wang

¹,

Changhui Qu

¹,

Dan Dong

²,

Ting Ma

^1,* and

Jian Dong

^1,*

¹

Department of Ultrasound, First Affiliated Hospital of Shihezi University, Shihezi 832008, China

²

School of Medicine, Shihezi University, Shihezi 832003, China

^*

Authors to whom correspondence should be addressed.

^†

These authors contributed equally to this work.

Pathogens 2026, 15(9), 987; https://doi.org/10.3390/pathogens15090987

Submission received: 21 August 2026 / Revised: 15 September 2026 / Accepted: 15 September 2026 / Published: 17 September 2026

(This article belongs to the Section Parasitic Pathogens)

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Abstract

Hepatic alveolar echinococcosis (HAE) is characterized by infiltrative growth and remodeling of perilesional host tissue, including microvascular changes. We investigated whether quantitative contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) could characterize perilesional perfusion and its animal-level association with CD34-positive cell density in a standardized rat model. Twenty female Sprague Dawley rats underwent ultrasound-guided intrahepatic HAE modeling and CEUS 10 weeks later. Peak enhancement (PE), rise time (RT), time to peak (TTP), wash-in rate (WiR), wash-in perfusion index (WiPI), and wash-in area under the curve (WiAUC) were measured in the perilesional zone and reference liver parenchyma. CD34-positive cell density was quantified by digital pathology. The perilesional zone showed higher PE, WiR, WiPI, and WiAUC and shorter RT and TTP than the reference liver parenchyma (all FDR-adjusted p < 0.001). CD34-positive cell density correlated positively with PE (ρ = 0.696, FDR-adjusted p = 0.004), WiR (ρ = 0.525, FDR-adjusted p = 0.026), WiPI (ρ = 0.614, FDR-adjusted p = 0.012), and WiAUC (ρ = 0.534, FDR-adjusted p = 0.026), but not with RT or TTP. Within this experimental model, these findings indicate increased and accelerated perilesional perfusion and support quantitative CEUS as a contrast-enhanced imaging-based approach for characterizing its relationship with local microvascularity.

Keywords: hepatic alveolar echinococcosis; contrast-enhanced ultrasound; time–intensity curve; CD34-positive cell density; microvascular perfusion; perilesional zone

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MDPI and ACS Style

Zhao, H.; Xu, Y.; Li, X.; Wang, Z.; Cheng, Y.; Wang, J.; Qu, C.; Dong, D.; Ma, T.; Dong, J. Quantitative Contrast-Enhanced Ultrasound Characterization of Perilesional Perfusion and Its Association with CD34-Positive Cell Density in a Rat Model of Hepatic Alveolar Echinococcosis. Pathogens 2026, 15, 987. https://doi.org/10.3390/pathogens15090987

AMA Style

Zhao H, Xu Y, Li X, Wang Z, Cheng Y, Wang J, Qu C, Dong D, Ma T, Dong J. Quantitative Contrast-Enhanced Ultrasound Characterization of Perilesional Perfusion and Its Association with CD34-Positive Cell Density in a Rat Model of Hepatic Alveolar Echinococcosis. Pathogens. 2026; 15(9):987. https://doi.org/10.3390/pathogens15090987

Chicago/Turabian Style

Zhao, Huan, Ya Xu, Xinyao Li, Zhen Wang, Yuhang Cheng, Jingyu Wang, Changhui Qu, Dan Dong, Ting Ma, and Jian Dong. 2026. "Quantitative Contrast-Enhanced Ultrasound Characterization of Perilesional Perfusion and Its Association with CD34-Positive Cell Density in a Rat Model of Hepatic Alveolar Echinococcosis" Pathogens 15, no. 9: 987. https://doi.org/10.3390/pathogens15090987

APA Style

Zhao, H., Xu, Y., Li, X., Wang, Z., Cheng, Y., Wang, J., Qu, C., Dong, D., Ma, T., & Dong, J. (2026). Quantitative Contrast-Enhanced Ultrasound Characterization of Perilesional Perfusion and Its Association with CD34-Positive Cell Density in a Rat Model of Hepatic Alveolar Echinococcosis. Pathogens, 15(9), 987. https://doi.org/10.3390/pathogens15090987

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Quantitative Contrast-Enhanced Ultrasound Characterization of Perilesional Perfusion and Its Association with CD34-Positive Cell Density in a Rat Model of Hepatic Alveolar Echinococcosis

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