Multimodal study of the hemodynamic response to hypercapnia in anesthetized aged rats.
With aging, the brain undergoes changes in metabolism and perfusion, both of which influence the widely used blood-oxygenation-level-dependent (BOLD) MRI signal. To isolate the vascular effects associated with age, this study measured the response to a hypercapnic challenge using different imaging modalities in 19 young (3 months-old) and 13 old (24 months-old) Long-Evans rats. Intrinsic optical imaging was used to measure oxy (HbO), deoxy (HbR) and total (HbT) hemoglobin concentration changes, laser speckle for cerebral blood flow (CBF) changes, and MRI for the BOLD signal. Older rats had smaller HbO (41% smaller), HbT (50%) and CBF (34%) responses, but the temporal dynamics did not exhibit significant age differences. The ratio of CBV to CBF responses was also smaller in older adults, potentially indicating a change in the compliance of vessels.
Institut de Génie Biomédical, Dpt. de Génie Électrique, École Polytechnique de Montréal, C.P. 6079, succ. Centre-ville, Montréal, QC, H3C 3A7, Canada; Montreal Heart Institute, 5000 rue Bélanger, Montréal, QC, H1T 1C8, Canada. Electronic address: michele.desjardins@polymtl.ca.
Michèle
M
Desjardins
Institut de Génie Biomédical, Dpt. de Génie Électrique, École Polytechnique de Montréal, C.P. 6079, succ. Centre-ville, Montréal, QC, H3C 3A7, Canada; Montreal Heart Institute, 5000 rue Bélanger, Montréal, QC, H1T 1C8, Canada.
Romain
R
Berti
Institut de Génie Biomédical, Dpt. de Génie Électrique, École Polytechnique de Montréal, C.P. 6079, succ. Centre-ville, Montréal, QC, H3C 3A7, Canada; Montreal Heart Institute, 5000 rue Bélanger, Montréal, QC, H1T 1C8, Canada.
Philippe
P
Pouliot
Institut de Génie Biomédical, Dpt. de Génie Électrique, École Polytechnique de Montréal, C.P. 6079, succ. Centre-ville, Montréal, QC, H3C 3A7, Canada; Montreal Heart Institute, 5000 rue Bélanger, Montréal, QC, H1T 1C8, Canada.
Simon
S
Dubeau
Institut de Génie Biomédical, Dpt. de Génie Électrique, École Polytechnique de Montréal, C.P. 6079, succ. Centre-ville, Montréal, QC, H3C 3A7, Canada; Montreal Heart Institute, 5000 rue Bélanger, Montréal, QC, H1T 1C8, Canada.
Frédéric
F
Lesage
D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology*; D000758:Anesthesia; D000818:Animals; D002560:Cerebrovascular Circulation; D006439:Hemodynamics; D006454:Hemoglobins / Q000032:analysis; D006935:Hypercapnia / Q000503:physiopathology*; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D061848:Optical Imaging; D020318:Rats, Long-Evans
D006454:Hemoglobins
Aging; BOLD fMRI; Hypercapnia; Intrinsic optical imaging; Laser speckle; Two-photon microscopy