Table 1.

Evaluation of PACAP immunostaining. Intensity of staining (IS) was graded on a scale of 0–4, according to the following assessment: no detectable staining (0), weak staining (1), moderate staining (2), strong staining (3), very strong staining (4). The percentage of PACAP immunopositive cells (Extent Score = ES) was independently evaluated by 3 investigators (2 anatomical morphologists and one histologist) and scored as a percentage of the final number of 100 cells in five categories: <5% (0); 5%–30% (+); 31%–50% (++); 51%–75% (+++), and >75% (++++).

Groups	Intensity of PACAP Immune Staining (IS) and Percentage of PACAP Immuneopositive Cells (Extent Score = ES)
Control rats without ACLT	Very strong immunostaining (ES = ++++; IS = 4)
Control sham-operated rats without ACLT	Very strong immunostaining (ES = ++++; IS = 4)
Experimental rats without ACLT	Weak/absent immunostaining (ES = +; IS = 1)