Transneuronal Degeneration of Thalamic Nuclei following Middle Cerebral Artery Occlusion in Rats

Figure 1

Illustration of middle cerebral artery occlusion procedure. (a) The sternocleidomastoid muscle and sternohyoid gap are located in the vicinity of the right common carotid artery, dividing in the neck to form the external and internal carotid arteries. (b) A 4-0 nylon suture (red line) is inserted and moved towards the internal carotid artery bifurcation, and the blood supply from the external carotid artery is cut off. The 4-0 nylon suture is inserted 20–22 mm into the internal carotid artery in order to slowly occlude the middle cerebral artery. CCA: common carotid artery, ECA: external carotid artery, ICA: internal carotid artery, and PPA: pterygopalatine artery.

(a)

(b)