Thoracic aortic aneurysms (TAAs) are life-threatening vascular diseases with no effective pharmacotherapy to halt progression, largely due to an incomplete understanding of the inflammatory mechanisms driving aortic wall degeneration. Emerging evidence highlights the critical roles of immune cell infiltration, vascular smooth muscle dysfunction, and endothelial activation in TAA pathogenesis, yet standardized and reproducible methodologies for dissecting these processes remain limited.

This Topical Collection aims to provide a comprehensive suite of video-based protocols that enable researchers to systematically investigate vascular inflammation in thoracic aortic aneurysms (TAAs) at multiple levels, from whole-tissue architecture to single-cell resolution and functional assessment. We invite contributions covering the following complementary areas:

1. En face immunostaining techniques for visualizing immune cell distribution, endothelial activation, and inflammatory foci across the entire aortic intimal surface.
2. Optimized enzymatic and mechanical dissociation protocols for high-yield single-cell isolation from murine and human aneurysmal aortas, compatible with downstream single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq), flow cytometry, and multi-omics analyses.
3. Ex vivo vessel contraction assays using wire and pressure myography to evaluate vascular smooth muscle contractile function and endothelial-dependent vasorelaxation in TAA models. 

By providing detailed visual demonstrations of these experimental protocols, this collection seeks to lower technical barriers, enhance inter-laboratory reproducibility, and accelerate discovery in the field of vascular inflammation and aneurysm research. Ultimately, we aim to bridge basic mechanistic studies with translational applications, facilitating the development of novel diagnostic biomarkers and therapeutic strategies for TAAs.