[Histonet] Rat perfusion rates

[Pixley, Sarah (pixleysk)]

Dear Wisam Barkho:

We have done rat perfusion and here is our procedure. We perfuse cold saline
until the liver blanches (turns distinctly and evenly paler) and the fluid
coming out of the heart is clear. This is about 5 mins. Then we switch to
ice-cold 4% para and let it go for 30 minutes. In our hands, this is almost,
but not quite 500 mls. So we perfuse at ~one liter/hr. For us, with our
tubing and pump, if  the flow is right, then it just drips out of the
perfusion needle, it does not squirt in a stream. And after inserting the
needle, you definitely do not want to see fluid dripping from the nose. That
is too much pressure. A colleague here, who does perfusion even more often,
does both the saline and 500 mls of para in a total of 30 mins, so they are
running a bit faster. The best guide is to examine the tissues. Too great a
flow will result in expansion of the blood vessels. This may be difficult to
determine if you are not used to looking at your tissue without perfusion.

As for amounts, we use 500 mls per adult rat.

Sincerely,
Sarah Pixley
University of Cincinnati College of Medicine