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Airway Physiology Core - Services

The Penn Vet airway physiology core features the Buxco Fine-Pointe® resistance/compliance instrument, the flexiVent® instrument, and the Buxco® Small Animal Whole Body Plethysmography instrument.

The devices allow simultaneous measurements of resistance and dynamic compliance and tidal volume either anesthetized mice (Buxco Fine-Pointe® resistance/compliance instrument and flexiVent® instrument) or non-anesthetized mice (Buxco® Small Animal Whole Body Plethysmography) simultaneously.

The systems utilize delivering aerosolized methacholine, a synthetic choline and agonist of the muscarinic receptor, which is used clinically to diagnose asthma and other lung disorders associated with airway hypersensitivity and constriction.

The staff of the Airway Pathology Core will:

Collect samples following invasive measurements (e.g., blood, brochoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF), and lung)

Prepare lung tissues for histopathology

Count total and differential cell populations in bronchoalveolar lavage

Provide consultation for pulmonary data analysis and interpretation

Consultation

Consultation for experimental design and animal protocol amendment, if needed. Client may opt to transfer their mice to the Core’s existing protocol, or may need to add experimental drugs or treatments of interest to the existing protocol.

Inhalation Models

Inhalation models of allergic & non-allergic environmental exposures

+ Transgenic phenotyping

+ Therapeutic drug discovery

Measurement
and
Assessment

Measurement and assessment of airway physiology and lung compliance in mice

+ FlexiVent® system

+ Buxco® FinePointe Resistance and Compliance system

Non-Invasive Whole Body Plethysmography

Buxco® Small Animal Whole Body Plethysmography system

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