High-energy head-focused microwave irradiation for neurochemical analysis of brain lipids, neurotransmitters and energy related metabolites

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Brain signaling (the ability to transmit messages) is a very rapid and sensitive event.  Although this is very useful for survival it means that in a laboratory study the stress associated with extracting the rodent brain could alter the variable being measured.  Several well known examples of brain metabolites that are dramatically altered in response to a lack of blood flow (or oxygen) to the brain include fatty acids, neurotransmitters and energy related metabolites.  Often researchers avoid making these important measurements simply because their levels change so dramatically, making the results hard to interpret.  One method that has been developed to minimize the stress associated with removing the brain is high-energy head-focused microwave irradiation.  This method involves targeting the head of the rodent with a very powerful microwave beam that both (a) very rapidly (less than 1 second) euthanizes the animal and (b) stops all enzymatic function, preserving the brain in its basal state.  This methodology is a humane method of euthanizing rodents and it is essential for accurately measuring levels of brain fatty acids, neurotransmitters and several energy related metabolites.  The purchase of a high-energy head-focused microwave will allow us to make accurate measurements of important (often understudied) metabolites that are critical to our research programs.  We anticipate that the acquisition of a high-energy head-focused microwave will not only immediately improve upon our current research programs, but in the future it will allow us to explore novel areas, that we cannot currently examine.