Selective aerosol delivery to intubated rats; a comparison with nose only exposure

Abstract A new aerosol delivery system, which leads the aerosol directly to the lung via an endotracheal tube (under anaesthesia), bypassing the upper respiratory tract has been characterized. Animals can be repeatedly treated for study of drug effects in models of asthma. The amount Evans blue deposited in the lung with nebulized Evans blue dye was 12 μg which is 8% of the filter amount (158 μg, filter sampling 0.2 L/min, 5 min exposure). The distribution within the lung was 10% to 20% in the central airways and the rest in the peripheral part of the lung, regardless of whether or not the rats were being exposed nose only or via the endotracheal tube. No significant weight changes on stress sensitive organs were seen.