Rapid Breakdown of Microvascular Barriers and Subsequent Hemorrhagic Transformation After Delayed Recombinant Tissue Plasminogen Activator Treatment in a Rat Embolic Stroke Model

Abstract

The DeltaR2* changes during rtPA delivery in MION-injected animals indicate extravasation of MION, which reflects increased permeability of the blood-brain barrier. This implies that late rtPA treatment rapidly aggravates early ischemia-induced damage to microvascular barriers, thereby enhancing hemorrhagic transformation.