Fig. 3.

Administration of VPA regulates the proportion of Th17 and Treg cells. Male BALB/c mice (n = 20 per group) were infected with CVB3 on day 0, and then treated with either VPA (i.p., 250 mg/kg) or vehicle (PBS) daily from day 0 to day 7 postinfection. The frequencies of Th17 cells or Treg cells in mice from spleen on indicated days postinfection were analyzed by Flow cytometry (a and c, left panels). Bar graphs showed the representative percentages of Th17 cells or Treg cells (b and d, right panel). The serum levels of characteristic cytokines IL-17A (e) and IL-10 (f) in CVB3 infection mice were determined by ELISA. mRNA expression of IL-17A (g) and IL-10 (h) in cardiac tissues were detected by qRT-PCR on indicated days postinfection. i The CVB3 replication in cardiac tissues were detected by qRT-PCR on indicated days postinfection. j The expression of viral capsid protein (VP1) in cardiac tissues was detected by western blot on indicated days postinfection. Results are presented as the mean ± SEM of three independent experiments. ^* P < 0.05, ^** P < 0.01, ^*** P < 0.001, compared with CVB3 group