Functional magnetic resonance imaging of median nerve stimulation in rats at 2.0 T.
An animal model of sensory activation using fMRI at 2.0 T has been developed, demonstrating that fMRI studies on animals need not be limited to high field magnets. These methods produced reliable image intensity changes of 2% using median nerve stimulation in rats at 3 Hz and propofol as the anesthetic agent. At 6 Hz the activation was slightly but not statistically significantly greater. The feasibility of fMRI studies in animals using propofol suggests that it may be a useful anesthetic for fMRI studies in agitated adult patients or in children.
Scanley
B E
BE
Department of Psychiatry, West Haven VAMC, CT 06516, USA.
Kennan
R P
RP
Cannan
S
S
Skudlarski
P
P
Innis
R B
RB
Gore
J C
JC
D018686:Anesthetics, Intravenous / Q000494:pharmacology; D000818:Animals; D004558:Electric Stimulation; D005260:Female; D006993:Hypnotics and Sedatives / Q000494:pharmacology; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D008475:Median Nerve / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology*; D015742:Propofol / Q000494:pharmacology; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D013003:Somatosensory Cortex / Q000502:physiology
D018686:Anesthetics, Intravenous; D006993:Hypnotics and Sedatives; D015742:Propofol