A gerbil model of cerebral ischemia suitable for drug evaluation.

Cerebral ischemia was produced in the Mongolian gerbil by bilateral occlusion of the carotid arteries. Although the cerebral ischemia so produced was not total, a mortality rate of 100% was obtained if the occlusion was maintained for 60 min in gerbils weighing 45--55 gm. Few deaths were observed after 50 min of bilateral carotid arterial occlusion. Test drugs were administered, after the removal of the arterial clips, to groups of gerbils to determine the mortality rate associated with each drug. Isoproterenol 50 mg/kg, amphetamine 5.0 mg/kg, and methylprednisolone 35 mg/kg improved survival after cerebral ischemia. Atropine 1 mg/kg, thiosemicarbazide 4 mg/kg, aminooxyacetic acid 100 mg/kg, theophylline 100 mg/kg, and phenytoin 50 mg/kg were associated with a reduced survival after cerebral ischemia. The known tendency of the gerbil to exhibit spontaneous seizures and the frequency and severity of the observed post-ischemic seizures suggest that the lethality of prolonged cerebral ischemia may be, in part, related to seizures triggered by the cerebral ischemia.