Distribution of Oxygen Tension in Neocortical Areas in the Rat Somatosensory Cortex

The purpose of this study is to identify the localized differentiation of oxygen transport in the brain. We measured oxygen tension in three neocortical areas (FL, HL, and Tr) of the rat somatosensory cortex by microcoaxial needle electrodes. The structure of neocortical area is characterized by the variation of cell shape, spatial distribution and size, which results in the following three types of the oxygen tension distribution; random, fluctuation, and hypoxia.