Pathogenetic similarity of strokes in stroke-prone spontaneously hypertensive rats and humans.

The predilection sites of cerebrovascular lesions (cerebral hemorrhage and/or softening) were studied in 1,278 stroke-prone spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRSP). The precise supply to the main cerebral arteries was determined by trypan blue injections and microangiography. The three major territories were the anteromedial cortex, the occipital cortex, and the basal ganglia. A common angioarchitectural characteristic of these three areas was the blood supply through "recurrent branching" from the main stream. In the basal ganglia, where there is a preponderance of lesions, the arteries responsible for these lesions belonged to the lateral group of lenticulostriate arteries. The primary pre-stroke arterial lesions were further studied microangiographically in SHRSP killed at the time the initial symptoms of stroke were detected. These points were located at the "boundary zone" of the main cerebral arteries. Our findings indicated the importance of these two angioarchitectural minor loci as the basis for functional or organic circulatory disturbances that may cause stroke. Since these local factors of stroke are common in the cortex and basal ganglia of rats and basal ganglia of humans, these SHRSP are regarded as good pathogenetic models for studies on stroke in humans.