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PubMed2005

Neurometabolic coupling in the vegetative and minimally conscious states: preliminary findings.

The objective of this study was to determine the integrity of the homoeostatic coupling relationship between neuronal electrical function and cerebral metabolism in the vegetative and minimally conscious states. Ten patients who met recognised diagnostic criteria (six in the vegetative state and four minimally conscious) were investigated using simultaneous electroencephalography and positron emission tomography. It was found that the coupling between neuronal electrical activity and regional glucose metabolism was preserved in all the minimally conscious patients but was absent in all the vegetative state patients. Our preliminary results suggest patients in the vegetative state may endure an impaired coupling relation between neuronal electrical function and cerebral energy metabolism.

Adult↗
PubMed1998

Ventilatory and metabolic effects of hypercapnia in conscious rats: AVP V1 receptor block.

In conscious dogs, arginine vasopressin (AVP) inhibits an angiotensin II drive to ventilation during air breathing and during acute hypercapnia. To determine whether AVP inhibits respiration in rats, as in dogs, respiration and metabolism were measured in six male Sprague-Dawley rats using a plethysmograph. Rats breathed air, followed by 5% and 6.5% CO2 with or without AVP V1 receptor block. In unblocked experiments, minute ventilation (V) increased to a comparable level during inhalation of both CO2 gas mixtures, resulting in a flattening of the ventilatory response to increased Paco2. However, oxygen consumption decreased during 6.5% CO2, compared with 5% CO2, so that the ventilatory equivalent for O2 increased in a more linear manner with respect to Paco2. The main effect of AVP V1 receptor block was to increase mean arterial blood pressure; there was no significant effect of AVP V1 receptor block on respiratory responses. AVP does not inhibit respiration in conscious rats as it does in conscious dogs.

Animals↗
PubMed1999

Dose-dependent effects of nitric oxide synthase inhibition on systemic and renal hemodynamics in conscious lambs.

The present experiments were carried out to determine the role of nitric oxide in influencing systemic and renal hemodynamics in conscious young sheep. Parameters of cardiovascular function were measured before and for 4 h after intravenous injection of either L-NAME (NG-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester) or D-NAME (N(G)-nitro-D-arginine methyl ester) at doses of 10, 20, or 40 mg/kg in 13 conscious, chronically instrumented young sheep aged 43 +/-5 days. Blood pressure increased and heart rate decreased in a dose-dependent manner following administration of L-NAME. Renal vascular resistance was increased for 10 min following a dose of 10 mg/kg of L-NAME and for 120 min following a dose of 40 mg/kg of L-NAME. The renal vasodilatory response to close arterial injection of 1 microg/kg of acetylcholine was attenuated by L-NAME in a dose-dependent manner. These experiments provide the first information that under normal physiological conditions in conscious young animals, nitric oxide influences systemic and renal hemodynamics.

Acetylcholine↗
PubMed1978

Blood pressure in conscious and anesthetized adrenal-enucleated Sprague-Dawley and Wistar-Furth rats.

Systolic blood pressure was measured weekly in conscious and in anesthetized female Sprague-Dawley (SD) and Wistar-Furth (W/Fu) rats following adrenal enucleation, unilateral nephrectomy, and the imposition of a high salt intake. SD rats quickly developed adrenal-regeneration hypertension (ARH) which progressed rapidly, and was identifiable in both the conscious and the anesthetized state. W/Fu rats slowly developed mild ARH, which, with a single exception, was identifiable only in conscious animals; the arterial pressures were within the normotensive range under anesthesia. The depressor effect of ether was also greater in adrenal-enucleated W/Fu than in similarly prepared SD rats, and in hypertensives than in normotensives. It is concluded that blood pressure measurements taken under anesthesia may not be representative of the true resting blood pressures: this is likely to be a particularly crucial problem in identifying early hypertension under circumstances and in rat strains highly susceptible to the depressor effects of ether.

Adrenal Glands↗
PubMed1994

Hemorrhage from the inferior vena cava versus the ear artery: a comparison of cardiovascular and hormonal responses in conscious rabbits.

There are inherent complications associated with chronic indwelling venous catheters for use as bleed catheters in long term hemorrhage experiments in conscious animals. As an alternative we have developed a protocol for bleeding conscious rabbits using a disposable catheter in the central ear artery. Previously we had bled rabbits through a catheter chronically implanted in the inferior vena cava (IVC); thus, we were interested in any potential differences in the hormonal (vasopressin and renin) and cardiovascular profile during hemorrhage between the IVC and ear artery bleeds. Rabbits underwent two bleeds, 1 week apart, one using the indwelling IVC catheter and the other with an ear artery (EA) catheter. We compared the mean arterial pressure (MAP), heart rate (HR), plasma vasopressin (AVP), and plasma renin activity (PRA) before and during hemorrhage. Baseline cardiovascular and hormonal values were the same, regardless of choice of bleed site. In addition there were no differences between bleed sites in the rate of fall of MAP (slope: IVC, 0.24 +/- 0.05; EA, 0.26 +/- 0.04) and the rate of rise of HR (slope: IVC, -1.37 +/- 0.22; EA, -1.20 +/- 0.19). Finally the AVP and PRA values associated with a MAP of 50 mmHg (1 mmHg = 133.3 Pa) (close to peak levels achieved during the hemorrhage) were also not different between IVC and EA bleeds. Given that the profiles of the bleeds were not different and that surgical implantation, possible infection, and daily flushing were avoided by the use of the EA catheter, we concluded that use of the EA as a site for bleeding conscious rabbits was justified.

Animals↗
PubMed2005

Insulin secretion in the conscious mouse is biphasic and pulsatile.

Islets in most species respond to increased glucose with biphasic insulin secretion, marked by a sharp first-phase peak and a slowly rising second phase. Mouse islets in vitro, however, lack a robust second phase. To date, this observation has not been extended in vivo. We thus compared insulin secretion from conscious mice with isolated mouse islets in vitro. The arterial plasma insulin response to a hyperglycemic clamp was measured in conscious mice 1 wk after surgical implantation of carotid artery and jugular vein catheters. Mice were transfused using clamps with blood from a donor mouse to maintain blood volume, allowing frequent arterial sampling. When plasma glucose in vivo was raised from approximately 5 to approximately 13 mM, insulin rose to a first-phase peak of 403+/-73% above basal secretion (n=5), followed by a rising second phase of mean 289+/- 41%. In contrast, perifused mouse islets ( approximately 75 islets/trial) responded with a similar first phase of 508+/- 94% (n=4) but a smaller and virtually flat second phase of 169+/- 9% (n=4, P<0.05). Furthermore, the slope of the second-phase response differed significantly from zero in mice (2.63+/-0.39%/min, P<0.01), in contrast to perifused islets (0.18+/- 0.14%/min, P>0.30). Mice also displayed pulsatile patterns in insulin concentration (period: 4.2+/- 0.4 min, n=8). Conscious mice thus responded to increased glucose with biphasic and pulsatile insulin secretion, as in other species. The robust second phase observed in vivo suggests that the processes needed to generate second-phase insulin secretion may be abrogated by islet isolation.

Animals↗
PubMed1986

Elevation of plasma renin activity by alpha-adrenoceptor agonists in conscious dogs.

Experiments were performed in conscious trained dogs to determine whether renal alpha-adrenergic receptors mediate stimulation or inhibition of renin release. All dogs were uninephrectomized and surgically prepared with chronically indwelling catheters in the aorta, vena cava, and remaining renal artery at least 8 days before experiment. Direct renal artery (ia) infusion of the alpha-adrenoceptor agonist phenylephrine, 0.25 or 0.50 microgram X kg-1 X min-1 for 30 min, increased plasma renin activity (PRA) to 145 +/- 13 and 212 +/- 28% of control, respectively, within 5 min of drug infusion (P less than 0.01) in conscious sodium-replete dogs. In contrast, intravenous phenylephrine infusion decreased PRA by 50% (P less than 0.001). The increase in PRA observed during ia phenylephrine infusion was prevented by renal alpha-adrenoceptor blockade with phenoxybenzamine but not by beta-adrenoceptor blockade with propranolol. Methoxamine, another alpha-adrenoceptor agonist, also increased PRA when infused ia in both sodium-replete dogs and in dogs maintained on a low-sodium diet. In dogs with renal arterial electromagnetic flowprobes, ia phenylephrine infusion increased PRA without decreasing total renal blood flow. In summary, stimulation of renal alpha-adrenoceptors increases PRA in conscious dogs. This stimulation can occur in the absence of significant changes in total renal blood flow.

Animals↗
PubMed2003

NO and endogenous angiotensin II interact in the generation of renal sympathetic nerve activity in conscious rats.

Nitric oxide (NO) appears to inhibit sympathetic tone in anesthetized rats. However, whether NO tonically inhibits sympathetic outflow, or whether endogenous angiotensin II (ANG II) promotes NO-mediated sympathoinhibition in conscious rats is unknown. To address these questions, we determined the effects of NO synthase (NOS) inhibition on renal sympathetic nerve activity (RSNA) and heart rate (HR) in conscious, unrestrained rats on normal (NS), high-(HS), and low-sodium (LS) diets, in the presence and absence of an ANG II receptor antagonist (AIIRA). When arterial pressure was kept at baseline with intravenous hydralazine, NOS inhibition with l-NAME (10 mg/kg i.v.) resulted in a profound decline in RSNA, to 42 +/- 11% of control (P < 0.01), in NS animals. This effect was not sustained, and RSNA returned to control levels by 45 min postinfusion. l-NAME also caused bradycardia, from 432 +/- 23 to 372 +/- 11 beats/min postinfusion (P < 0.01), an effect, which, in contrast, was sustained 60 min postdrug. The effects of NOS inhibition on RSNA and HR did not differ between NS, HS, and LS rats. However, when LS and HS rats were pretreated with AIIRA, the initial decrease in RSNA after l-NAME infusion was absent in the LS rats, while the response in the HS group was unchanged by AIIRA. These findings indicate that, in contrast to our hypotheses, NOS activity provides a stimulatory input to RSNA in conscious rats, and that in LS animals, but not HS animals, this sympathoexcitatory effect of NO is dependent on the action of endogenous ANG II.

Angiotensin II↗
PubMed2006

Blood pressure regulation by ETA and ETB receptors in conscious, telemetry-instrumented mice and role of ETA in hypertension produced by selective ETB blockade.

The net contribution of endothelin type A (ET(A)) and type B (ET(B)) receptors in blood pressure regulation in humans and experimental animals, including the conscious mouse, remains undefined. Thus we assessed the role of ET(A) and ET(B) receptors in the control of basal blood pressure and also the role of ET(A) receptors in maintaining the hypertensive effects of systemic ET(B) blockade in telemetry-instrumented mice. Mean arterial pressure (MAP) and heart rate were recorded continuously from the carotid artery and daily (24 h) values determined. At baseline, MAP ranged from 99 +/- 1 to 101 +/- 1 mmHg and heart rate ranged between 547 +/- 15 and 567 +/- 19 beats/min (n = 6). Daily oral administration of the ET(B) selective antagonist A-192621 [10 mg/kg twice daily] increased MAP to 108 +/- 1 and 112 +/- 2 mmHg on days 1 and 5, respectively. Subsequent coadministration of the ET(A) selective antagonist atrasentan (5 mg/kg twice daily) in conjunction with A-192621 (10 mg/kg twice daily) decreased MAP to baseline values on day 6 (99 +/- 2 mmHg) and to below baseline on day 8 (89 +/- 3 mmHg). In a separate group of mice (n = 6) in which the treatment was reversed, systemic blockade of ET(B) receptors produced no hypertension in animals pretreated with atrasentan, underscoring the importance of ET(A) receptors to maintain the hypertension produced by ET(B) blockade. In a third group of mice (n = 10), ET(A) blockade alone (atrasentan; 5 mg/kg twice daily) produced an immediate and sustained decrease in MAP to values below baseline (baseline values = 101 +/- 2 to 103 +/- 2 mmHg; atrasentan decreased pressure to 95 +/- 2 mmHg). Thus these data suggest that ET(A) and ET(B) receptors play a physiologically relevant role in the regulation of basal blood pressure in normal, conscious mice. Furthermore, systemic ET(B) receptor blockade produces sustained hypertension in conscious telemetry-instrumented mice that is absent in mice pretreated with an ET(A) antagonist, suggesting that ET(A) receptors maintain the hypertension produced by ET(B) blockade.

Animals↗
PubMed1978

Regional blood flows measured in conscious rats by combined Fick and microsphere methods.

Regional blood flow measurements made by the radioactive microsphere technique were studied in conscious rats. A femoral arterial reference sample blood flow was measured directly, and at the same time indirectly by the combined use of direct Fick cardiac output and microsphere techniques. A significant correlation (r = .81, P less than .01) was obtained between direct and indirect blood flow values when 200--400 microspheres were trapped in the reference sample. When 100--200 microspheres were trapped, regional blood flow was 32% below true flow (P less than .01); and cardiac output, calculated by the reference sample method, was 57% greater than Fick cardiac output (P less than .01). When three consecutive Fick determinations and microsphere injections (20,000 per injection, 15 micrometer diam) were made in conscious rats, significant correlations were obtained among the first, second, and third regional blood flow measurements (r = .95, P less than .01). The results have demonstrated that cardiac output and reference blood flow can be measured with accuracy and precision in the conscious rat by the radioactive microsphere procedure.

Animals↗
PubMed1981

Bainbridge reflex in conscious, unrestrained, and tranquilized baboons.

The effects of volume loading were examined in conscious, unrestrained, and tranquilized baboons (20-25 kg) 1-3 mo after instrumentation with miniature left ventricular pressure and diameter gauges. The response to volume loading was accompanied by significant increases (P less than 0.01) in cardiac rate (32 +/- 4 beats/min) in tranquilized baboons. When rapid saline infusion was accomplished in conscious unrestrained baboons by means of activating a remote-controlled interrogator, heart rate also rose significantly (41 +/- 8 beats/min, P less than 0.01). After cholinergic blockade with atropine, ganglionic blockade with hexamethonium, bilateral vagotomy, or combined cholinergic and beta-adrenergic blockades, volume loading failed to increase heart rate. In two smaller (12-14 kg) intact conscious baboons with relatively high spontaneous heart rates, volume loading did not alter heart rate. These experiments suggest that the Bainbridge reflex exists in larger primates with relatively low spontaneous heart rates.

Animals↗
PubMed1988

Combined neurohumoral block modulates pulmonary vascular P/Q relationship in conscious dogs.

Our objective was to investigate the integrated pulmonary vascular response of conscious dogs to combined inhibition of the autonomic nervous system, arginine vasopressin (V1) receptors (vasopressinergic V1), and converting enzyme to identify the overall influence of these three major neurohumoral mechanisms in vascular regulation of the pulmonary circulation. Multipoint pulmonary vascular pressure-cardiac index (P/Q) plots were generated by graded constriction of the thoracic inferior vena cava, which produced stepwise decreases in Q. When compared with the P/Q relationship measured in intact conscious dogs, combined neurohumoral block resulted in active, nonflow-dependent pulmonary vasodilation. A second objective was to assess the extent to which cyclooxygenase pathway inhibition modified both the intact P/Q relationship and the pulmonary vasodilator response to combined neurohumoral block. Cyclooxygenase inhibition alone (either indomethacin or sodium meclofenamate) resulted in active, nonflow-dependent pulmonary vasoconstriction. Moreover, the pulmonary vasodilation in response to combined neurohumoral block was entirely abolished following cyclooxygenase inhibition. Thus the integrated pulmonary vascular response of conscious dogs to combined neurohumoral block is active vasodilation. This response appears to be mediated by metabolites of the cyclooxygenase pathway.

Animals↗
PubMed1989

Single-beat evaluation of left ventricular inotropic state in conscious dogs.

Two competing left ventricular elastic-resistive (ER) models were used to predict parameter values from pressure, volume, and time data of a single ejective beat in conscious dogs during control, enhanced (dobutamine), and decreased (propranolol) inotropic states. The animals were instrumented with three pairs of microcrystals and a transducer to measure intraventricular volume and pressure. Results showed that with the ER nonlinear model (ERNL), parameter values in all animals lay within the physiological range. These were the slope (Emax) and the intercept (V0) of the isovolumic end-systolic pressure-volume relationship (ESPVR), the slope of the end-diastolic pressure-volume relationship (Ed), the time to Emax (Tmax), the normalized time to end of activation (A), and the resistive constant (K). In the two models, the normalized SE of the estimate of data fitting was below 0.2 Emax, as estimated from a single beat, responded to changes in contractility in a significantly more consistent fashion than the slope of ESPVRs (Ees) generated by preload maneuvers in conscious dogs. Single-beat estimated Tmax and K with the ERNL model did also respond consistently to contractility changes, whereas with the elastic resistive linear (ERL) model, K did not reproduce the experimental findings with decreased inotropic state. We conclude that 1) the ERNL model can be employed to assess contractility changes in conscious dogs from data of a single ejective beat, and 2) these changes are better indicated by single-beat estimated Emax than by Ees calculated from conventional ESPVRs.

Algorithms↗
PubMed1992

Systemic hemodynamics and oxygen transport during pregnancy in chronically instrumented, conscious rats.

Knowledge about possible alterations in cardiac output (CO), total peripheral vascular resistance (TPVR), and their time course and magnitude of change is conspicuously lacking for the conscious gravid rat. Therefore, we assessed CO using Fick methodology in unrestrained, chronically instrumented, conscious rats. The rats were studied during early (day 7), mid (day 13), or late gestation (day 18) along with nonpregnant control rats matched with respect to age and days postsurgery. Significant differences between pregnant and nonpregnant rats were observed during midgestation, when CO was increased by 26 +/- 12% and TPVR was decreased by 23 +/- 9% in the pregnant animals. These changes were accompanied by a narrowed arterial-mixed venous oxygen content difference (AVD; P < 0.05 vs. nonpregnant). In late gravid rats, CO was higher than nonpregnant values by 49 +/- 8%, and TPVR was lower by 34 +/- 7% (both P < 0.05). Oxygen consumption and carbon dioxide production were significantly increased, and AVD further narrowed when compared with the nonpregnant control group. With the exception of absent chronic respiratory alkalosis in pregnant rats, we conclude that cardiovascular and respiratory changes in conscious, gravid rats and in pregnant women are comparable. We speculate that the ultimate purpose of many of these adaptations is to increase CO so that oxygen delivery and the supply of nutrients to the uteroplacental units are sufficient or more than sufficient to meet oxygen and nutrient demands. At midgestation, the rise in CO seems to anticipate the oxygen needs of the nascent uteroplacental units.

Animals↗
PubMed1993

Abnormal responses to pulmonary vasodilators in conscious dogs after left lung autotransplantation.

We investigated the extent to which left lung autotransplantation (LLA) alters endothelium-dependent (bradykinin and acetylcholine) and endothelium-independent (sodium nitroprusside) vasodilation in the pulmonary circulation of conscious dogs. Continuous left pulmonary vascular pressure-flow (LPQ) plots were generated in conscious dogs 3-4 wk post-LLA and in sham-operated controls. LLA resulted in a marked upward shift in the baseline LPQ relationship compared with the control group (P < 0.01), i.e., LLA caused a chronic increase in pulmonary vascular resistance. The thromboxane analogue, U-46619, was used to acutely preconstrict the pulmonary circulation in control dogs, which shifted the control LPQ relationship to the same position measured post-LLA. Under these circumstances, bradykinin, acetylcholine, and nitroprusside caused pulmonary vasodilation in the control group, whereas these responses were either attenuated or reversed to vasoconstriction post-LLA. After acute preconstriction with U-46619 post-LLA, the pulmonary vasodilator responses to bradykinin and acetylcholine were again attenuated, but the response to nitroprusside was unaltered compared with control. These results indicate that a significant component of the chronic increase in pulmonary vascular resistance post-LLA is passively mediated and does not reflect an active increase in baseline vasomotor tone. Moreover, LLA results in an impairment in endothelium-dependent, but not endothelium-independent, pulmonary vasodilation in conscious dogs.

15-Hydroxy-11 alpha,9 alpha-(epoxymethano)prosta-5↗
PubMed1994

Measurement of coronary blood flow velocity in conscious rats.

This study describes a technique for the continuous recording of coronary blood flow velocity (CBV) in conscious unrestrained rats. A pulsed Doppler flow probe consisting of a 1-mm2 crystal mounted in a 4-mm suction cup was positioned over the left coronary artery of pentobarbital sodium-anesthetized rats. The probe was held in place with mild suction and sutured to the surface of the myocardium. Probes were connected to a pulsed Doppler flowmeter, which measures Doppler shift and provides an index of blood flow velocity. While rats were still anesthetized, the measurement of CBV was validated by determining that CBV peaked during diastole and increased in parallel with arterial pressure. Phasic CBV signals obtained in conscious rats were similar to those observed in anesthetized animals. Intravenous infusion of dipyridamole (0.5-3 mg.kg-1 x mg-1) produced a dose-dependent increase in CBV and decrease in coronary vascular resistance in conscious unrestrained rats 7 days after placement of the probe. Light microscopic review of cardiac tissue from instrumented rats revealed minimal epicardial reaction (fibrin deposition) restricted to the immediate area of the probe without distortion of the coronary architecture, edema, inflammation, or necrosis compared with controls. Heart weight-to-body weight ratios of instrumented rats were also not different from those of control rats. This study describes the first technique by which CBV can be measured continuously in chronically instrumented rats.

Animals↗
PubMed1994

Spontaneous leukocyte rolling in venules in untraumatized skin of conscious and anesthetized animals.

Intravital bright-field videomicroscopy was used to investigate whether leukocyte rolling can be observed under normal physiological conditions. We studied skin venules in trained conscious rats and anesthetized rats and mice without touching the skin itself. Leukocyte rolling was spontaneously present in all hindpaw venules of Lewis rats (diam 8-27 microns) and also in all mouse ear venules (Swiss, 13-38 microns; BALB/c, 12-56 microns). Rolling levels (in leukocytes/min, median and range) were 8 (3-15) in conscious rats, 9 (3-19) in anesthetized rats, 30 (5-160) in anesthetized Swiss mice, and 10 (3-22) in anesthetized BALB/c mice. These levels appeared to be independent of time. Noninvasive mechanical stimulation induced an average increase of 32%. Fluorescent labeling of leukocytes in vivo with acridine orange had no influence. In Swiss mice, the rolling velocity was < 50 microns/s for > 75% of the leukocytes (median 31 microns/s); this parameter did not correlate with reduced velocity (17-68 s-1) and hence wall shear rate. Our finding that leukocyte rolling is spontaneously present in skin venules of anesthetized and conscious animals suggests a constant vigilance of the host defense mechanisms in the skin.

Acridine Orange↗
PubMed1996

Differences in myocardial stunning following coronary artery occlusion in conscious dogs, pigs, and baboons.

To determine whether myocardial stunning differs among dogs, pigs, and baboons and is reproducible within species, we examined the effects of 10-min coronary artery (CA) occlusion (CAO) on 9 conscious dogs, 12 minipigs, and 6 baboons. During 10-min CAO, systolic wall thickening in the ischemic zone fell similarly in dogs (-108 +/- 5.6%), pigs (-102 +/- 1.8%), and baboons (-107 +/- 5.7%), but blood flow fell more (P < 0.05) in the subepicardium in pigs (0.07 +/- 0.01 ml.min-1.g-1) and baboons (0.07 +/- 0.02 ml.min-1.g-1) than in dogs (0.18 +/- 0.03 ml.min-1.g-1). At 1 h after CA reperfusion (CAR), wall thickening was reduced more (P < 0.05) in dogs (-40 +/- 4.2%) than in pigs (-22 +/- 2.1%) and baboons (-4 +/- 2.4%). In five dogs and five pigs, three separate 10-min CAO, each 2 days apart, were also examined. In dogs, reductions in wall thickening after CAR were significantly less following the second (-26 +/- 4.2%) or third (-30 +/- 3.2%) CAO, compared with the first CAO (-47 +/- 4.9%). In contrast, repetitive CAO did not induce differences in recovery of wall thickening in pigs. These results indicate that myocardial stunning is less severe in conscious pigs and baboons, compared with conscious dogs, despite more intense transmural ischemia. The dogs demonstrated a "preconditioning-like effect" with serial brief CAO, which was not exhibited in pigs.

Animals↗