A Stereotactically Guided Ablation Technique for Auditory Cortex Removal in Rats

Abstract

Source: Lamas, V., et al. Stereotactically-guided Ablation of the Rat Auditory Cortex, and Localization of the Lesion in the Brain. J. Vis. Exp. (2017).

This video demonstrates a stereotactically-guided surgical procedure for ablating the auditory cortex in a rat. The steps include identifying anatomical landmarks in an anesthetized rat secured in a stereotactic frame, creating a window on the skull above the auditory cortex, aspirating the cortical layers, and providing post-operative care to assess the impact of the ablation on sound processing.

Protocol

All procedures involving animal models have been reviewed by the local institutional animal care committee and the JoVE veterinary review board.

1. Preparation of the Rat

NOTE: We performed the experiments in male rats to avoid any hormonal changes.

1. Anesthetize the animal using a mix of ketamine hydrochloride (30 mg/kg) and xylazine hydrochloride (5 mg/kg) injected intramuscularly; with this dose, the rat should be deeply anesthetized for around 1 h.
2. Pinch the rat's toe; absence of a withdrawal reflex indicates that the animal is fully unconscious. If the ra....

Results

Figure 1: Images of the rat temporal bone at three different surgical steps. (A) Transfer of the stereotaxic coordinates of the AC to the temporal bone. The coordinates of the four points are: A: A/P= -5.8 mm, M/L= +/- 6.4 mm; B: A/P= -2........

Materials

List of materials used in this article

Name	Company	Catalog Number	Comments
Stereotaxic frame	David Kopf Ins.	900
Surgical microscope	WILD M650 Heerbrugg
Heating pad	DAGA
Dental micromotor	W&H elco	5118
Diamond burr	B Braun	GD021R	0.6 mm
Surgical suction device	Atmos	Atmoforte E2
Ketamine	Merial		30 mg/kg
Xylazine	Bayer		5 mg/kg
Micromanipulator	Narishige	SM-11
Scalpel	Lawton
Povidone iodine	Meda	Betadine
sterile saline serum	B.Braun
20G sterile needle	Terumo Neolus
Cotton tips
Suture material	B.Braun
Antibiotic Ointment	Quadriderm (Betametasona, Gentamicina, Clotrimazol) - Schering-Plough
Forceps	dimeda	10.331.12
Surgical needles	World Precision Instruments	501940
Buprenorphine	Indivior UK	Buprex	0.01-0.05 mg/kg
Scissor	dimeda	08.120.15
Microsurgical knife	MSP	7503
Absorbable hemostatic gauze	Surgicel
Wound clips	Reflex 9		9 mm