HEPES-buffered Ringer’s solution

In brief, the rats are anesthetized, followed by an injection of 0.2 mL of the test solution into the common carotid artery. The injection solution consists of a HEPES buffered Ringer s solution (containing 141 mM NaCl, 4 mM KC1, 2.8 mM CaCl2, and 10 mM HEPES, pH 7.4) which contains both the test substrate (e.g., a [3H]-labeled compound, about 10 /xCi) and a reference compound, which is highly extracted by the tissue (e.g., 0.1 /xCi [14C]n-butanol) in the presence or absence of transport inhibitors. If a [14C]-labeled compound is used as a test substrate, [3H]H20 can be selected as a reference compound. Rats are decapitated at 15 s after injection and the retina is removed. The retina is dissolved in 2 N NaOH and subsequently neutralized with 2 N HC1. The radioactivity is measured by liquid scintillation spectrometry. The RUI value, an index of the retinal distribution characteristics of the [3H] test substrate, is estimated using the following relationship ... 

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