Figure 4

Bilateral ischemia and vessel changes in Gcdh ^−/− mouse brain after protein diet exposure. Comparison of Gcdh ^−/+ and Gcdh ^−/− whole brain profile (a and f) with magnified cortical surface (inset), dorsal surface (b and g) and coronal section (c and h) with magnified areas of cortex (d and i) and striatum (e and j) both placed on the protein diet for 72 and 36-hours respectively. Evans blue injection shows normal vessel morphology with complete and smooth filling of cerebral vessels in Gcdh ^−/+ mouse. Inset (a) shows magnification of middle cerebral artery branch (blue arrow) and pial veins (red arrows). Ischemia is noted as lack of blue staining (black arrows) in profile (f) and bilaterally on dorsal view (g) and coronal section (h) of Gcdh ^−/− mouse. Inset (f) shows incomplete filling of middle cerebral artery branch (blue arrow) and differential filling of pial vein branches (red arrows). Magnified areas of cortex and striatum (i and j) show prominence of non-exchange vessels (>10 μm, white arrows) venous congestion (red arrows) and differential filling of return vessels (black arrows). (Evans blue protocol detailed in methods, scale bar = 100 μm).