5.

MMP-9 expression and infarct volume after MCAO. A: The wild-type mice were subjected to 1h MCAO and sacrificed 6 hours after reperfusion. MMP-9 expression in cerebral cortex was examined by immunostaining. Upper left image shows representative region of MMP-9 examined in neurons (NeuN) and astrocytes (GFAP). No significant MMP-9 expression was detected in normal brains (lower left image). Scale bar: 50μm. B: MMP-9 expression examined by zymography was attenuated in cerebral cortex of TLR4 mutants (C3H/Hej) compared to wild-type mice (C3H/Heouj) after MCAO. C: Infarct volume was reduced in C3H/Hej mice examined by TTC staining 24h after MCAO. Data are means±SD. *: p<0.05.