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Increased cerebral blood flow during hypercapnia is not affected by lesion of the nucleus locus ceruleus

Journal Article · · Stroke; (United States)
To test the hypothesis that the putative noradrenergic innervation of intraparenchymal cerebral blood vessels from the nucleus locus ceruleus mediates the vasodilatory response to hypercapnia, regional cerebral blood flow was measured by iodo-(/sup 14/C)antipyrine autoradiography in awake and restrained rats with unilateral 6-hydroxydopamine lesion of the nucleus locus ceruleus and in unlesioned control rats. Hypercapnia, induced by the inhalation of 5% or 8% CO/sub 2/ in air for 8 minutes caused a 2 to 5-fold increase in regional cerebral blood flow. However, despite a marked reduction of about 90% in cortical norepinephrine levels ipsilateral to the lesion, blood flow to the frontal and parietal cortex, hippocampus, striatum and cerebellum increased to the same extent in ipsilateral and contralateral regions. Thus, lesion of the locus ceruleus and the resultant depletion of endogenous cortical and hippocampal norepinephrine, does not influence the cerebrovascular response to hypercapnia.
Research Organization:
Univ. Hospitals of Cleveland, OH
OSTI ID:
6695991
Journal Information:
Stroke; (United States), Journal Name: Stroke; (United States) Vol. 6; ISSN SJCCA
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English