Permanent
middle cerebral artery occlusion (pMCAO) is an animal model that is widely used to simulate human
ischemic stroke. However, the timing of the changes in the expression of tight junction (TJ)
proteins and synaptic
proteins associated with pMCAO remain incompletely understood. Therefore, to further explore the characteristics and mechanisms of blood-brain barrier (BBB) damage during cerebral
ischemic stroke, we used a pMCAO rat model to define dynamic changes in BBB permeability within 120 h after
ischemia in order to examine the expression levels of the TJ
proteins claudin-5 and
occludin and the synaptic
proteins synaptophysin (SYP) and
postsynaptic density protein 95 (PSD95). In our study,
Evans blue content began to increase at 4 h and was highest at 8 and 120 h after
ischemia. TTC staining showed that
cerebral infarction was observed at 4 h and that the percentage of
infarct volume increased with time after
ischemia. The expression levels of
claudin-5 and
occludin began to decline at 1 h and were lowest at 8 and 120 h after
ischemia. The expression levels of SYP and PSD95 decreased from 12 to 120 h after
ischemia. GFAP, an astrocyte marker, gradually increased in the cortex penumbra over time post-
ischemia. Our study helps clarify the characteristics of pMCAO models and provides evidence supporting the translational potential of animal
stroke models.