Effects of severe arterial hypocapnia on regional blood flow regulation, tissuePO2 and metabolism in the brain cortex of cats

The effect of a stepwise decrease in PaCO2 from 3.9-1.6 kPa on rCBF, rCMRO2, tissue PO2 and concentrations of glucose, lactate, pyruvate, ATP, ADP, AMP and phosphocreatine in the brain cortex was studied in cats lightly anaesthetized with sodium pentobarbital. 1. Moderate lowering of PaCO2 to 2.5 kPa induced in all animals a homogeneous decrease of rCBF in corresponding areas of the right and left hemisphere. Mean rCBF fell from 129.2 to 103.1 ml X 100 g-1 X min-1, while rCMRO2 remained unchanged (12.7-12.9 ml X 100 g-1 X min-1). The tissue PO2 frequency histograms showed a shift to lower values without indicating the presence of brain tissue hypoxia. 2. Severe arterial hypocapnia (PaCO2 = …