Fig. 6.

Multiparous females exhibit fewer sensorimotor and cognitive deficits after stroke. Corner testing revealed significant asymmetry early after stroke in both groups, with markedly delayed recovery in virgin mice seen at days 21 and 28 (A). A mild impairment in forelimb strength was seen in virgin female mice at day 15 after stroke relative to their multiparous counterparts (B). Distance traveled in an open field apparatus is shown and a group effect was found (C). Time spent on an accelerating rotarod was recorded and demonstrated significantly more motor impairment at days 3 and 7 after stroke in virgins relative to multiparous females (D). Following a training period, memory retention was evaluated at day 30 using the Barnes maze test. Compared with virgins, multiparous mice traveled significantly shorter distances to locate the escape hole (E). Data are representative of two independent studies. For all experiments, n = 9–10 per group. Group effects were determined by two-way ANOVA with repeated measures and multiple comparisons were performed using post hoc Tukey test. Error bars show mean SEM. L, left; R, right. *P < 0.05; **P < 0.01; ***P < 0.001.