A new model of experimental hemispherotomy in young adult Rattus norvegicus: a neural tract tracing and SPECT in vivo study

OBJECTIVEThe objective of this study was to describe a new experimental model of hemispherotomy performed on laboratory animals.METHODSTwenty-six male young adult Wistar rats were distributed into two groups (surgery and control). The nonfluorescent anterograde neurotracer biotinylated dextran amine (BDA; 10,000 MW) was microinjected into the motor cortex area (M1) according to The Rat Brain in Stereotaxic Coordinates atlas to identify pathways and fibers disconnected after the experimental hemispherectomy. SPECT tomographic images of 99mTc hexamethylpropyleneamine oxime were obtained to verify perfusion in functioning areas of the disconnected and intact brain. A reproducible and validated surgical procedure is described in detail, including exact measurements and anatomical relationships. An additional 30 rodents (n = 10 rats per group) were divided into naive, sham, and hemispherotomy groups and underwent the rotarod test.RESULTSCortico-cortical neural pathways were identified crossing the midline and ...