title: Positron emission tomography with 11C-flumazenil in the rat shows preservation of binding sites during the acute phase after 2 h-transient focal ischemia.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Positron emission tomography (PET) studies in humans have used (11)C-flumazenil (FMZ) to assess neuronal viability after stroke. Here we aimed to study whether (11)C-FMZ binding was sensitive to neuronal damage in the acute phase following ischemia/reperfusion in the rat brain.
  
  
  METHODS
  Transient (2 h followed by reperfusion) and permanent intraluminal middle cerebral artery occlusion was carried out. (11)C-FMZ binding was studied by PET up to 24 h after the onset of ischemia. Tissue infarction was evaluated post-mortem at 24 h. Immunohistochemistry against a neuronal nuclei specific protein (NeuN) was performed to assess neuronal injury.
  
  
  RESULTS
  No decrease in (11)C-FMZ binding was detected in the ipsilateral cortex up to 24 h post-ischemia in the model of transient occlusion despite the fact that rats developed cortical and striatal infarction, and neuronal injury was clearly apparent at this time. In contrast, (11)C-FMZ binding was significantly depressed in the ipsilateral cortex at 24 h following permanent ischemia.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This finding evidences that (11)C-FMZ binding is not sensitive to neuronal damage on the acute phase of ischemia/reperfusion in the rat brain.
authors.affiliation: Institut d'Alta Tecnologia, Parc de Recerca Biomèdica de Barcelona (IAT-PRBB), CRC Corporació Sanitària, Barcelona, Spain. srojas@crccorp.es
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Rojas
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Martín
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Pareto
authors.forename: J R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Herance
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Abad
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ruíz
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Flotats
authors.forename: J D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Gispert
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Llop
authors.forename: V
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Gómez-Vallejo
authors.forename: A M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Planas
mesh_terms: D000208:Acute Disease; D000818:Animals; D001665:Binding Sites / Q000502:physiology; D002545:Brain Ischemia / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000503:physiopathology; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D005442:Flumazenil; D008297:Male; D009410:Nerve Degeneration / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000503:physiopathology; D049268:Positron-Emission Tomography / Q000379:methods; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D015427:Reperfusion Injury / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000503:physiopathology
chemical_list: D005442:Flumazenil