2.2. BCCAO Protocol

The classic VaD model induced by BCCAO was used to induce permanent CCH. Animals were fasted for 12 h before surgery but were freely allowed to drink water. The rats were anesthetized with 2% sodium pentobarbital (50 mg/kg body weight, i.p.). A ventral cervical incision was made to expose the bilateral common carotid artery, which was then separated from the carotid sheath and vagus nerve. In the vehicle and drug treatment (SK-L and SK-H) groups, the common carotid arteries were double ligated with 4–0 silk sutures. To ensure that arterial blood flow was blocked, the arteries were cut between the ligations. The sham group underwent the same procedure excluding the ligations. During the procedure, an incandescent lamp was used to maintain a body temperature of 36.5–37.5°C.