Bladder Function Assessment via Cystometry

Cystometry was performed as we had reported previously (5 (link)). The rats were anesthetized using 2% isoflurane, and a midline abdominal incision was made to expose the bladder. A PE-50 polyethylene tube with a fire-flared tip was implanted into the bladder dome for bladder filling and pressure recording two days before the experiments. The catheter was then implanted in the subcutaneous space. In cystometry, rats were placed in a Ballman restraining cage (Natsume Seisakusho) and the indwelling catheter to the bladder was connected via a three-way stopcock to a pressure transducer and a syringe pump (KD Scientific Inc., Holliston, MA, USA). Physiological saline was infused at room temperature (22–24°C) into the bladder at a rate of 2.4 ml/h. The intravesical pressure was recorded using a force transducer, quad bridge amplifier FE224 (ADInstruments, Bella Vista, NSW, Australia), and PowerLab data-acquisition system with LabChart Pro (ADInstruments).