Figure 1.

Effect of αMSH treatment (100 μg/kg) on spleen weight (a), serum concentrations of nitrites/nitrates (b), liver TNFα mRNA (c) and liver TNFα protein (d) in control rats or in rats treated with LPS (250 μg/kg). PF = pair-fed rats. αMSH treatment decreased the stimulatory effect of LPS administration on spleen weight, serum concentration of nitrites + nitrates, liver TNFα, and liver TNFα mRNA. Results are expressed as means ± SEM for 6–10 rats per group. ∗∗P < 0.01 and ∗P < 0.05, LSD multiple comparisons test.