Regional cerebrovascular permeability-surface area (PA) products were calculated for two nonelectrolyte tracers differing considerably in molecular weight and size [( 14C]sucrose: mol wt 340 daltons, radius 5 A; and [3H]dextran: mol wt approximately 79,000 daltons, radius approximately 65 A) in control (uninfused) rats and in rats 6, 35, and 55 min after the blood-brain barrier was opened by a 30-s infusion of 1.8 molal L(+)-arabinose into a carotid artery. In control brain regions, mean PA for [14C]sucrose was 10(-5) s-1, whereas PA was not measurable for [3H]dextran. Six minutes after arabinose infusion, PA for both substances increased dramatically to 10(-4) s-1 or more; PA then declined at 35 and 55 min after arabinose infusion, but more markedly for [3H]dextran than for [14C]sucrose. The results demonstrate a size-dependent, differential rate of closure of the blood-brain barrier after osmotic opening. This is shown to be consistent with a pore model with bulk flow for blood-brain barrier permeability after osmotic opening.

The effect of glucocorticoids on the blood-brain barrier (BBB) was studied in rats following a single injection or 3 days of dexamethasone administration. Tracers with a low permeability across the intact endothelium, [14C]sucrose and alpha-[3H]aminoisobutyric acid ([3H]AIB), were simultaneously injected intravenously in untreated rats or in rats treated with dexamethasone. Unidirectional blood-to-brain transfer constants (Ki) in 14 regions of the rat brain were determined. In regions of control brain, average Ki values for AIB and sucrose were approximately 0.0020 and 0.00060 ml g-1 min-1, respectively. The lowest transfer constants were found in caudate nucleus, hippocampus, white matter, and cerebellum. In dexamethasone-treated animals, Ki values for both sucrose and AIB markedly decreased by 30-50% in almost all brain regions. These results indicate that a single injection or 3 days of treatment with dexamethasone causes an apparent reduction in the normal BBB permeability, and dexamethasone may greatly interfere with drug delivery into brain. These observations may have an importance for the administration of drugs in brain disease in the presence of steroids.

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