Fig. 1.

Effects of mephedrone (4′ – 40 mg/kg), methylone (4′ –30 mg/kg), and MDPV (4′ – 30 mg/kg) alone or in combination on DA nerve endings of the striatum. Mice were treated with mephedrone (MEPH; 4′ – 40 mg/kg), MDPV (4′ – 30 mg/kg), or methylone (MTHY; 4′ – 30 mg/kg) singly or in the indicated two-drug combinations and the levels of DA (a), dopamine transporter (DAT) (b), tyrosine hydroxylase (TH), (c) and glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) (d) were determined 2 days after treatment. Controls were injected with physiological saline on the same binge schedule used for the β-ketoamphetamines. DA levels were determined by HPLC and are reported as % control. Relative pixel densities for immunoblots of DAT, TH, and GFAP were quantified using ImageJ, normalized to glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPDH) and expressed as relative band density by comparison to the respective control. Data are expressed as mean ± SEM for n = 4–5 mice per group.