Utilizing a Cranial Window to Visualize the Middle Cerebral Artery During Endothelin-1 Induced Middle Cerebral Artery Occlusion

Summary

This article describes a method for visualizing rat cerebral arteries through a cranial window using temporal craniectomy in order to view proximal portions of the middle cerebral artery (Figure 1). This versatile method can be combined with various techniques of drug delivery to measure cerebral artery reactivity in vivo.

Abstract

Creation of a cranial window is a method that allows direct visualization of structures on the cortical surface of the brain^1-3. This technique can be performed in many locations overlying the rat cerebrum, but is most easily carried out by creating a craniectomy over the readily accessible frontal or parietal bones. Most frequently, we have used this technique in combination with the endothelin-1 middle cerebral artery occlusion model of ischemic stroke to quantify the changes in middle cerebral artery vessel diameter that occur with injection of endothelin-1 into the brain parenchyma adjacent to the proximal MCA^{4, 5}. In order to visualize the proximal portion of the MCA during endothelin -1 induced MCAO, we use a technique to create a cranial window through the temporal bone on the lateral aspect of the rat skull (Figure 1). Cerebral arteries can be visualized either with the dura intact or with the dura incised and retracted. Most commonly, we leave the dura intact during visualization since endothelin-1 induced MCAO involves delivery of the vasoconstricting peptide into the brain parenchyma. This bypasses the need to incise the dura directly over the visualized vessels for drug delivery. This protocol will describe how to create a cranial window to visualize cerebral arteries in a step-wise fashion, as well as how to avoid many of the potential pitfalls pertaining to this method.

Protocol

This protocol was approved by the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) at the University of Florida and is in compliance with the “Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals” (eighth edition, National Academy of Sciences, 2011). Materials Animals: Eight-week-old, male, Sprague Dawley rats (Charles River Farms, Wilmington, MA, USA) weighing 250-300 g at the time of surgery. Anesthesia Inhalation anesthesia system (VetEquip In…

Representative Results

Still images taken from the captured video show that the change in cerebral artery diameter after ET-1 injection can be readily appreciated using this cranial window technique (Figure 2). Within minutes of ET-1 injection, the vessel will begin to constrict. Eventually the vessels will be difficult to visualize and the brain tissue will become pale. After about 20 min the effects of ET-1 will diminish and the vessels will begin to dilate, gradually returning to baseline diameter after about 45 min. In add…

Discussion

In summary, this cranial window preparation technique is very versatile as it can be altered to meet the needs of many experiments with minor modifications^{4, 5}. For example, we have successfully monitored cerebral blood flow in specific MCA branches using laser doppler flowmetry to focus directly on a cerebral artery visualized through a cranial window (Mecca AP 2009 and 2011). In addition, a similar preparation with the dura incised can be used with topical administration of vasoactive compounds to create an …

Materials

Name of the reagent	Company	Catalogue number	Comments (optional)
Inhalation anesthesia system	VetEquip Inc., Pleasanton, CA, USA	901806
Isoflurane anesthetic	Baxter Pharmaceutics, Deerfield, IL, USA	1001936060
Small animal stereotaxic system	David Kopf Instruments, Tujunga, CA, USA	900
Non-rupture ear bars, rat	David Kopf Instruments, Tujunga, CA, USA	957
Rat gas anesthesia head holder	David Kopf Instruments, Tujunga, CA, USA	1929
BAT-12 microprobe thermometer	World Precision Instruments, Inc., Sarasota, FL, USA	BAT-12
T/PUMP, Thermal blanket	Gaymar Industries, Inc., Orchard Park, NY, USA	T/PUMP, TP600
Metzenbaum Scissors	World Precision Instruments, Inc., Sarasota, FL, USA	501254
Iris forceps	World Precision Instruments, Inc., Sarasota, FL, USA	15915
Bulldog clamp retractors	World Precision Instruments, Inc., Sarasota, FL, USA	14119-G
10 μl syringe 26-gaugue	World Precision Instruments, Inc., Sarasota, FL, USA	SGE010RNS
Bovie, high temperature cautery kit	World Precision Instruments, Inc., Sarasota, FL, USA	500392
Rat tooth forceps 0.12	Stotz	E1811
Micromotor drill	Stoelting, Wood Dale, IL, USA	51449
0.8 mm round drill bur	Roboz Surgical Instrument Co., Inc., Gaithersburg, MD, USA	RS-6280C-1
STORZ Bonn suturing forceps	Bausch and Lomb, Inc., Rochester, NY, USA
Nylon Suture, size 3.0	Oasis, Mettawa, IL, USA	MV-663
Cotton swabs	Fisher Scientific, Pittsburg, PA, USA	22-029-488
Puralube eye ointment	Fisher Scientific, Pittsburg, PA, USA	NC0138063
Electric hair clippers	Oster, Providence, RI, USA	78005-301
ET-1 diluted to 80 μM concentration in PBS	American Peptide, Sunnyvale, CA, USA	88-1-10A
Chlorhexidine, 2%	Agrilabs, St. Joseph, MO, USA	1040, Rev. 6-06, NAC No.: 10580322
Surgical microscope	Seiler Instrument and Manufacturing, St. Louis, MO, USA	Evolution xR6
Sony Handycam	Sony, Minato, Tokyo, Japan	HDR-SR12
Fiber optic illuminator	TechniQuip Corp., Livermore, CA, USA	FO1–150
VLC media Player	(Paris, France)
Image J software	U.S. National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MA, USA