PHOTODYNAMIC THERAPY OF NORMAL CEREBRAL TISSUE IN THE CAT: A NONINVASIVE MODEL FOR CEREBROVASCULAR THROMBOSIS

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Abstract
The early neuropathological response of normal cat brain to photodynamic therapy was investigated. Photofrin II was injected (IV) into a cat and photoactivated with red light from a filtered incandescent lamp. Animals were subjected to phototherapy either through the intact skull or with energy deposition onto the intact dura. Following photoactivation the animals were maintained for 6 h after which time the brain was removed and sections submitted for electron microscopic and or light microscopic study. Gross anatomical analysis of the photoactivated brain revealed hemorrhagic dusky discoloration limited to the area of the tissue illuminated. Animals that failed to show a lesion were cats characterized by low Photofrin II dosage and low photoactivation intensity. The microscopic cortical features of cats with lesions included prominent capillary congestion and regions of marked vacuolization and rarefaction. Blood vessels were structurally altered and the lumen of many vessels was completely filled with tightly packed erythrocytes. Our study suggests that the acute neuropathological response of cerebral tissue to photoactivation resembles that of microvascular thrombosis. It is thus reasonable to explore PDT of normal tissue as a non invasive model of cerebrovascular thrombosis in the cat.