TY  - JOUR
TI  - Catheterization of Pulmonary and Carotid Arteries for Concurrent Measurement of Mean Pulmonary and Systemic Arterial Pressure in Rat Models of Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension
AU  - Sarkar, Tanoy 
AU  -  Isbatan, Ayman 
AU  - Moinuddin, Sakib M
AU  -  Chen, Jiwang 
AU  - Ahsan, Fakhrul 
VL  - 13
IS  - 16
PY  - 2023
DA  - 2023/08/20
SP  - e4737
C1  - Bio-protocol 2023;13:e4737
DO  - 10.21769/BioProtoc.4737
UR  - https://doi.org/10.21769/BioProtoc.4737
AB  - Pulmonary hypertension (PH) is a group of pulmonary vascular disorders in which mean pulmonary arterial pressure (mPAP) becomes abnormally high because of various pathological conditions, including remodeling of the pulmonary arteries, lung and heart disorders, or congenital conditions. Various animal models, including mouse and rat models, have been used to recapitulate elevated mPAP observed in PH patients. However, the measurement and recording of mPAP and mean systemic arterial pressure (mSAP) in small animals require microsurgical procedures and a sophisticated data acquisition system. In this paper, we describe the surgical procedures for right heart catheterizations (RHC) to measure mPAP in rats. We also explain the catheterization of the carotid artery for simultaneous measurement of mPAP and mSAP using the PowerLab Data Acquisition system. We enumerate the surgical steps involved in exposing the jugular vein and the carotid artery for catheterizing these two blood vessels. We list the tools used for microsurgery in rats, describe the methods for preparing catheters, and illustrate the process for inserting the catheters in the pulmonary and carotid arteries. Finally, we delineate the steps involved in the calibration and setup of the PowerLab system for recording both mPAP and mSAP. This is the first protocol wherein we meticulously explain the surgical procedures for RHC in rats and the recording of mPAP and mSAP. We believe this protocol will be essential for PH research. Investigators with little training in animal handling can reproduce this microsurgical procedure for RHC in rats and measure mPAP and mSAP in rat models of PH. Further, this protocol is likely to help master RHC in rats that are performed for other conditions, such as heart failure, congenital heart disease, heart valve disorders, and heart transplantation.
KW  - Pulmonary hypertension
KW  - Right heart catheterization
KW  - Rat model
KW  - Mean pulmonary arterial pressure
KW  - Mean systemic arterial pressure
KW  - PowerLab system
KW  - Pulmonary artery catheterization
KW  - Pulmonary artery catheter
KW  - Pulmonary artery wedge pressure
KW  - Invasive monitoring
KW  - Hemodynamic monitoring
JF  - Bio-protocol
SN  - 2331-8325
PB  - Bio-protocol LLC.
BIO101  - False