Transport of p-aminohippuric acid (3H-PAH), inulin and dextran out of the cranial cavity: a methodological study using intraventricular injection and sample combustion.

Material injected into the cerebral ventricles can leave the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) but remain in the cranial cavity. To analyze the disappearance of 3H- and of 14C-labelled material from the cranial cavity, such material was injected into the lateral ventricles together with a bulk flow marker, labelled with the other radionuclide. In the present pilot study 3H-PAH and 14C-inulin were used. Five microliter of a mixture was injected into each lateral cerebral ventricles in rats, which were killed at various intervals. The whole skull was analyzed without opening the CSF space after homogenization in the deep-frozen state. The samples were combusted and analyzed by liquid scintillation counting. Probenecid, injected intraperitoneally, inhibited the removal of 3H-PAH from the skull cavity, as anticipated. Immediately after the intraventricular injection, however, 3H-PAH was transiently retained, probably by uptake into actively transporting tissue. After injection of probenecid, this delay in removal was reduced. The difference in disappearance rate between 3H-PAH and 14C-inulin was estimated by comparing the 3H/14C ratio in the skulls with that in the injected solution, which appeared to be a better method than comparing the recovery of each compound.