Fig. 7. Absence of neurotoxic effects of propofol (100 μg/ml) on organotypic slice cultures prepared from neonate rats (postnatal age, 1 day). (A ) Illustration of propidium iodide staining in a slice culture prepared from a neonate rat on postnatal day 1, exposed for 7 days to propofol in a medium containing 10% horse serum as for cortical cell cultures. Only a few labeled cells can be detected. (B ) Illustration of GABAA-mediated inhibitory postsynaptic potentials recorded in the presence of 5 μm NBQX and 10 μm CPP in a slice culture prepared from a rat on postnatal day 1 in control conditions and after propofol treatment. Traces (averages of three) are illustrated before and after application of 10 μm bicuculline, a GABAA-receptor antagonist. (C ) Summary of amplitude measurements of excitatory (top ) and inhibitory (bottom ) responses evoked by supramaximal stimulation in control and propofol-treated slice cultures. Data are mean ± SD of the values obtained in five different cultures. No statistically significant differences were detected.