Standardization Made Easy

Procedure standardization often rhymes with a set of strict guidelines to be followed or defined protocol restrictions. This is however no longer the case for the preclinical assessment of airway hyperresponsiveness (AHR) using aerosolized contractile agonists.

Indeed, the missing key element in this widely performed procedure, the access to the dose of aerosolized agent delivered to the subject’s airways, is now available to researchers with the push of a button in the flexiVent’s operating software for a knowledgeable reporting and interpretation of results. The only requirement, in addition to the regular calibration of the system, is the characterization of the nebulizer output rate, which is known to vary from unit to unit, with usage, and time.

By easily taking into account protocol variations, the introduction of an automated delivered dose estimate will undoubtedly bring a valuable element of standardization to the technique of AHR. Contact us to find out how to improve AHR study comparisons and reproducibility.

READ MORE

Delivered dose estimate to standardize airway hyperresponsiveness assessment in mice. Robichaud et al. American Journal of Physiology-Lung Cellular and Molecular Physiology, 2015. DOI:10.1152/ajplung.00343.2014.

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Longitudinal studies with the flexiVent

When developing an appropriate protocol to assess respiratory mechanics, there is a trade-off between accuracy of the measurements and the invasiveness of the technique. The flexiVent favours an invasive technique, producing results that are unparalleled in accuracy. However, when performing longitudinal studies, there is some tendency to lean towards non-invasive techniques as recovering animals post-surgery can be complicated. This certainly affects the quality of the collected data and also requires larger subject groups to balance the variability in the data.

The flexiVent can absolutely perform repeat measurements when using intubation, allowing researchers to conduct longitudinal studies and acquire detailed lung mechanics information. There are many published studies performed with the flexiVent that highlight longitudinal studies with mice, rats, and guinea pigs via tracheal intubation, with just a small sampling listed below.

De Vleeschauwer SI, Rinaldi M, De Vooght V, Vanoirbeek JA, Vanaudenaerde BM, Verbeken EK, Decramer M, Gayan-Ramirez GN, Verleden GM, Janssens W. Repeated invasive lung function measurements in intubated mice: an approach for longitudinal lung research. Lab Anim. 2011 Apr;45(2):81-9. Epub 2011 Feb 28.

Heulitt MJ et al. Repeated measurements of respiratory mechanics in developing rats utilizing a forced oscillation technique. Exp Lung Res. 2008. 34(7): 409-423.

Furthermore, there are a number of publications that highlight the intubation technique itself, including several on JoVE.

Thomas, J. L., Dumouchel, J., Li, J., Magat, J., Balitzer, D., Bigby, T. D. Endotracheal Intubation in Mice via Direct Laryngoscopy Using an Otoscope. J. Vis. Exp. (86), e50269, doi:10.3791/50269 (2014).

Das, S., MacDonald, K., Chang, H. Y. S., Mitzner, W. A Simple Method of Mouse Lung Intubation. J. Vis. Exp. (73), e50318, doi:10.3791/50318 (2013).

Contact Us For More References

Our Applications Specialists are happy to provide additional publications or put you in touch with researchers who routinely perform intubations so that you may gain confidence in the procedure and move towards longitudinal studies with the flexiVent.

Phone 1.514.286.1429 | Toll Free 1.877.572.4737
Email [email protected]