Figure 1.

DHβE induces motor abnormalities in Leu9’Ala mice. a) Representative pictures of the phenotypic effect induced by DHβE (1 mg/kg, i.p.) 90 minutes after injection in a) WT and b) Leu9’Ala homozygous mice. Arrows highlight hind limb rigidity, arched back, and curled tail in Leu9’Ala mice. c-f) Motor symptoms were characterized every 30 min for 180 min in WT and Leu9’Ala mice immediately following an i.p. challenge of 3 or 1 mg/kg DHβE, respectively. Effects of saline injection are also shown (n = 4/genotype). c) Akinesia: Number of forelimb steps forward were counted for 30 seconds (WT: n=4, Leu9’Ala: n=7 Leu9’Ala). d) Catalepsy: Latency for forelimbs to fall off a raised bar for 2 minutes was recorded (WT: n=5, Leu9’Ala: n=7). e) Clasping of hind limbs during a 10 second period was measured: 0 = hind limbs spread wide apart, 1 = hind limbs are 25% closed, 2 = hind limbs are 50% closed, 3 = hind limbs are 75% closed with some clasping, 4 = constant clasping. (WT: n=5, Leu9’Ala: n=3). f) Tremor score: 0 = no tremor, 1 = isolated twitches, 2 = tremor with periods of calm, 3 = constant tremor (WT: n=4, Leu9’Ala: n=7). *p<0.05, **p<0.01, and ***p<0.001