Fig. 7.

RTL1000 and DRα1-MOG-35-55 treatment of MCAO. RTL1000, which is comprised of the HLA-DR2 β1α1 domains linked to human MOG-35-55 peptide and DRα1-MOG-35-55 that lacks the polymorphic β1 domain, can reduce infarct size in female and male mice after MCAO. In males, where peripheral immune cells cause greater MCAO damage than in females and possibly some MIF dependent inflammation, RTL1000 and DRα1-MOG-35-55 have the same treatment potency. In females, which appear to have little if any MIF-dependent MCAO damage, treatment with RTL1000 is tenfold more potent than DRα1-MOG-35-55. This differential treatment effect between males and females could be based on gender-associated effects of MIF on infarct size, recruitment of peripheral immune cells into the ischemic brain, and axonal death