Combination of Endothelin-1 (ET-1) and L-NAME to Induce Murine Focal Cortical Stroke with Persistent Sensorimotor Deficits

Abstract

The endothelin-1 (ET-1) model of stroke involves the stereotactic injection of the vasoconstrictor ET-1 to produce a focal ischemic injury. In rats, this model produces consistent deficits, in contrast to more variable results in mice. In this chapter, we describe a new method to induce a murine focal ischemic cortical stroke by injecting L-NAME, another potent vasoconstrictor, in combination with ET-1 into the sensorimotor cortex. This ET-1/L-NAME stroke induction protocol produces consistent focal cortical infarcts and sensorimotor functional impairments in C57BL/6 mice.