AJP - Heart and Circulatory Physiology, Vol 243, Issue 3 416-H423, Copyright © 1982 by American Physiological Society
Local cerebral circulatory and metabolic effects of indomethacin
J. McCulloch, P. A. Kelly, J. J. Grome and J. D. Pickard
The effects of indomethacin, a prostaglandin synthesis inhibitor, upon
local cerebral glucose utilization and local cerebral blood flow have been
examined in 36 conscious, lightly restrained rats. Cerebral glucose
utilization and cerebral blood flow were determined by means of the
quantitative autoradiographic techniques that utilize, respectively,
2-deoxy-D-[1-14C]glucose and iodo[14C]antipyrine as tracer molecules. The
administration of indomethacin (0.3-30 mg/kg iv) did not alter
significantly the rate of glucose utilization in any of the 38 discrete
regions of the central nervous system that were examined. In contrast,
cerebral blood flow in every region was significantly reduced by between 30
and 50% from vehicle-injected control levels after the administration of 10
mg/kg iv indomethacin and by 5-31% after 1 mg/kg iv indomethacin. These
results provide further evidence that prostaglandins may play a major role
in cerebrovascular regulation, but they provide no positive evidence for a
role in neuronal activity, as reflected in local cerebral glucose
utilization.
