The problem of information value in microvascular networks

A novel methodology of quantitative estimation of the information value in microvascular networks is proposed. The methodology has been developed on the basis of the results of wavelet analysis of skin blood flow oscillations measured by means of laser Doppler flowmetry (LDF) in 30 healthy subjects and 56 patients with hand diseases or consequences of hand injuries. The method is based on the calculation of the relative indices of information preservation, dominance of the preserved information, and information effectiveness. The deviation from the multistable information regimen is the largest in the case of resonance oscillations: the total information quantity is significantly decreased; however, the preservation of dominant information and its effectiveness are improved. The preservation of trophic myogenic information predominates upon reduction of sympathetic influences. An increase in the number of information channels increases only the information quantity, whereas the degree of its preservation varies. Sensory peptidergic nerve fibers are activated in response to local heating of the dorsal forearm skin to 34°C. This information is the most effective at the beginning of the heating, when the blood flow increases to a plateau. The blood flow oscillations represented in the wavelet spectrum of microcirculatory oscillations serve as operators based on effective information. These oscillations not only play the hemodynamic role, but also carry information in microvascular networks. © 2011 Pleiades Publishing, Ltd.