Diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging detects early neuropathology following four vessel occlusion ischemia in the rat.
Early neuropathology following a prolonged duration of four-vessel occlusion (4 VO) ischemia in the rat was charted using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Animals received either 30 minutes of 4 VO (N = 6) or sham operation (N = 6) prior to in vivo assessment. Proton density and T(2) and combined T(2)/diffusion-weighted (T(2)/DW) MRI were performed at 6, 24, and 72 hours postocclusion. T(2)/DW imaging was the most effective sequence for delineating between injured and intact tissues, indicating neuropathology in the dorsolateral striatum at 24 hours and in the CA1/CA2 subfields of the hippocampus at 72 hours following ischemia. Apparent diffusion coefficient values were significantly reduced in the striatum (P = 0.03) and hippocampus (P = 0.005) at 24 and 72 hours, respectively. This is the first report, to our knowledge, of T(2)/DW imaging detecting lesions following 4 VO in accord with the known temporal evolution of ischemic brain damage.
Gregory
L J
LJ
Department of Neurology, Guy's, King's and St. Thomas' School of Medicine, King's College, London, UK. lloyd.gregory@man.ac.uk
O'Neill
M J
MJ
Nunn
J A
JA
Gray
J A
JA
Williams
S C
SC
D000818:Animals; D003342:Corpus Striatum / Q000473:pathology*; D005911:Gliosis / Q000175:diagnosis; D006624:Hippocampus / Q000473:pathology*; D007511:Ischemia / Q000175:diagnosis*; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar