Intrabronchial Delivery: A Technique to Administer an Experimental Agent Selectively Into a Mouse Lung

- An intrabronchial delivery administers an experimental agent to a particular lung. First, fix an anesthetized mouse to a plastic board in a supine position, and cannulate the trachea with an extended catheter. To cannulate the distal right lung, rotate the board to 30 degrees and guide the catheter parallel to the mouse's midline until you feel resistance.

Administer the experimental agent into the catheter. Then with a dropper, dispense air to clear the agent from the catheter. Withdraw the catheter and maintain the mouse in position for 30 seconds. Place the mouse in a cage for recovery.

To deliver experimental agents to the distal left lung following intratracheal cannulation, rotate the plastic board to minus 74 degrees. Gently advance the catheter into the left mainstem bronchus. Rotate the board to minus 30 degrees to allow gravitational assistance for experimental agent administration. Deliver more volume of the experimental agent proportionate to the left lung lobe having a larger area. With a dropper, dispense air and withdraw the catheter. Maintain the mouse in position for 30 seconds, then place it in a cage to recover.

The following protocol shows Evans blue dye deliv