Figure 3
Vascular filling pattern after selective infusion of a small volume of physiological saline solution (PSS) containing 2% Evans blue (EB) into the internal carotid artery (ICA).
The occluding filament was left in situ during the infusion. Depicted are examples in which a BP-tip filament (upper panel-a) or a S-TB tip filament (lower panel-b) were used for occlusion (the images exemplify the conditions found in 3 animals occluded with a BP-tip and 3 animals occluded with a S-TB tip). The pictures indicate the retrograde filling of the main trunk and daughter vessels of the middle cerebral artery (MCA) via collateral arteries fed from the posterior cerebral artery. The filling of the collateral system was considerably better in the BP-tip occluded animal. Some dye has also entered the main trunks of the cerebral arteries in the contralateral hemisphere via the posterior communicating arteries. Note the displacement of the MCA origin on the occluded side (arrow head) in the lower panel, in comparison to the contralateral side (arrow) at the base of brain. A detailed outline of the collateral pathways and EB filling pattern between MCA and posterior cerebral artery (PCA) is shown in Supplementary Figure S1.
