Changes in extracellular concentration of amino acids in the hippocampus during cerebral ischemia in stroke-prone SHR, stroke-resistant SHR and normotensive rats.

To investigate the role of glutamate release in cerebral ischemia, the amounts of amino acids (glutamate, taurine, alanine, glycine and glutamine) released in the hippocampal CA1 region of stroke-prone SHR (SHRSP), stroke-resistant SHR (SHRSR) and normotensive rats (WKY) were determined during and after cerebral ischemia by the microdialysis method under halothane anesthesia. Cerebral ischemia was produced by the occlusion of both common carotid arteries for 20 min. The basal amino acids release did not differ among the three strains of rats, but ischemic glutamate and taurine releases were more marked in SHRSP than in other strains. These results suggest that the massive glutamate release during cerebral ischemia of SHRSP might be related with severe neuronal cell injury.