Brain vasculature and mitochondrial responses to ischemia in gerbils. II. Strain differences and statistical evaluation.

The correlation between the anatomy of brain vasculature and the metabolic responses to ischemia was studied in two strains of the Mongolian gerbil as compared to the albino rat. Gerbils belonging to the Meriones unguiculatus obtained from Tumblebrook Farms and from the NY Institute for Basic Research were compared to two lines of the Meriones tristrami obtained from two different breeders in Israel. In all groups of gerbils and in the albino rats, a significant correlation was found between the anatomical patterns of the Circle of Willis and the metabolic responses to ischemia as evaluated by NADH redox state measurements, namely, that with a complete anterior anatomical Circle of Willis the metabolic response to unilateral occlusion was minimal. In the anterior part of the Circle of Willis the various groups of gerbils exhibited the entire range of ischemia levels, from 0-100%, depending upon the anatomical structure of the arteries. In M. tristrami, the anterior communications between the two hemispheres were very well developed as compared to the various degrees of connection found in the different individuals of M. unguiculatus. This anatomical pattern corresponds well to the metabolic response recorded under unilateral and bilateral occlusion. The best connection in the posterior part, was found in M. tristrami. This was less frequent (10-20% of the gerbils) in M. unguiculatus. A clear correlation was found between the size of the posterior communicating artery and the changes in NADH redox state measured during bilateral carotid artery ligation. The variation between gerbils of the same litter was significantly smaller than that of the general population of the same strain.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)