Figure 3.

Development of glial nodules and astrogliosis in the hindbrain of twitcher mice. A: Confocal images. Original magnification, ×40. Development of glial nodules and astrogliosis from weeks 2 to 5 compared with age-matched control mice. Arrowheads indicate glial nodules. Glial nodules (IBA-1, green) are seen as early as 2 weeks of age and then increase in frequency. Associated with the glial nodules are numerous astrocytes (GFAP, red) with thickened processes (astrogliosis). Over time, astrogliosis becomes diffuse. Scale bar = 50 μm. B: A representative 3D image from the hindbrain of a 3-week-old twitcher mouse captured with Volocity software version 5. Original magnification, ×63 with ×2 digital zoom. Images depict a central microglial aggregate (green) surrounded by interdigitating, hypertrophied astrocytes (red). Each square is 37.5 × 37.5 μm.