TABLE 7.
Rat and rabbit models of meningitis
| Route of infection | Animal | Pneumococcal serotype(s) | Aim(s) of study | Readouts | Utility | Reference(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| i.cist. | Infant Sprague-Dawley rat | 3 | Drug efficacy, MMPa in brain damage | Drug pharmacokinetics, histology, CFU, MMP in CSF | Therapeutic studies, host immune response, brain damage | 145, 242 |
| i.cist. | Wistar rat | 3, 6 | Microvascular changes | ICPb, rCBFc, brain edema | Meningitis pathophysiology | 193 |
| i.cist. | Wistar rat | 2 | Damage to brain ependyma | Ciliary beat frequency, CFU, CSF parameters, SEMd of brain | Virulence studies, host response to infection, brain damage | 103 |
| i.p. | Infant Sprague-Dawley rat | 3 | Pathogenesis of inner ear invasion | CFU in blood and CSF, histology of ME and brain | Meningitis secondary to ear infection, drug efficacy studies | 206 |
| Otologic, i.p. | Wistar rat | 2 | Cochlear implantation in meningitis | Gram staining, histology, CFU counts | Post-cochlear implantation meningitis, therapeutic studies | 253 |
| i.cist. | New Zealand White rabbit | 3 | Model description, drug study | β-Lactam concentrations in CSF | Disease pathophysiology, host response, drug and virulence studies | 69 |
| i.cist. | New Zealand White rabbit | 3 | Hearing assessment | Hearing loss, histology of inner ear and brain | Hearing loss due to meningitis, drug efficacy | 26 |
a
MMP, metal metalloproteinases.
b
ICP, intracranial pressure.
c
rCBF, regional cerebral blood flow.
d
SEM, scanning electron microscopy.