S. Ikemoto et Lg. Sharpe, A head-attachable device for injecting nanoliter volumes of drug solutionsinto brain sites of freely moving rats, J NEUROSC M, 110(1-2), 2001, pp. 135-140
We describe a head-mounted micropump-injection system designed for the infu
sion of nanoliter volumes of drug solutions into discrete brain regions of
the freely moving rats. Using a miniature step motor, the micropump-injecti
on system can be readily constructed from commercially available supplies.
In calibrating the micropump-injection system, we found that it will delive
r a reliable volume of 50 nl per infusion over a 1-h period, with an infusi
on given every 1 min. From in vivo testing, we also found that rats readily
self-administered up to 100 infusions of D-amphetamine into the nucleus ac
cumbens at regular intervals, suggesting that this system can deliver const
ant volumes of infusions over time in freely moving rats. It (1) attaches e
asily to an implanted guide, (2) is compact and durable, (3) weighs only 10
g, and (4) is well tolerated with no apparent discomfort to the animal. Th
is system overcomes some of the weaknesses of currently used intracranial s
elf-administration systems. Published by Elsevier Science B.V.