Middle cerebral artery occlusion in the rat by intraluminal suture. Neurological and pathological evaluation of an improved model

Stroke. 1996 Sep;27(9):1616-22; discussion 1623. doi: 10.1161/01.str.27.9.1616.

Abstract

Background and purpose: The purpose of the present study was to evaluate a modified method of intraluminal suture occlusion of the middle cerebral artery (MCA) on the volume of brain infarction and on neurobehavioral function in rats subjected to a temporary focal ischemic insult.

Methods: Male Sprague-Dawley rats were anesthetized with halothane and subjected to 60 minutes or 2 hours of temporary MCA occlusion (MCAo) by an intraluminal thread. In one group of rats, the suture was coated with poly-L-lysine, while in a second group, a conventional uncoated suture was used. Behavioral function was evaluated at 50 to 60 minutes after occlusion and during a 3-day period after MCAo. Three days after MCAo brains were perfusion-fixed and infarct volumes were measured.

Results: In rats with 60-minute MCAo, only 3 of 7 animals with uncoated sutures had infarcts, whereas in the group with poly-L-lysine-coated sutures, all rats (n = 7) exhibited infarction (P = .009, Fisher's exact test). With 2 hours of MCAo, total infarct volume (corrected for brain edema) was significantly larger in rats with poly-L-lysine-coated sutures than in the group with uncoated sutures (mean +/- SEM, 122.1 +/- 4.8 versus 67.0 +/- 18.2 mm3, respectively; P = .03; n = 4 in each group). In the 2-hour MCAo study, infarct volumes in the uncoated-suture group tended to be variable and inconsistent (coefficient of variation, 54%) compared with the group in which sutures were coated with poly-L-lysine, in which a highly consistent infarct was produced (coefficient of variation of infarct volume, 8%).

Conclusions: Reversible MCAo in which a poly-L-lysine-coated intraluminal suture was used proved to be a reliable and effective modification of this technique, yielding consistently larger infarcts and greatly reduced interanimal variability.

Publication types

  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S.

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Arterial Occlusive Diseases / etiology
  • Arterial Occlusive Diseases / pathology*
  • Arterial Occlusive Diseases / physiopathology*
  • Behavior, Animal / physiology
  • Brain / pathology
  • Cerebral Arteries*
  • Cerebral Infarction / pathology
  • Cerebral Infarction / physiopathology
  • Male
  • Nervous System / physiopathology*
  • Polylysine
  • Rats
  • Rats, Sprague-Dawley
  • Surface Properties
  • Suture Techniques
  • Sutures

Substances

  • Polylysine

Grants and funding