Figure 2.
Intra-cerebroventricular administration of MSC-spheroids normalizes both the ethanol-induced activation of hippocampal astrocytes and the increases in MCP-1 levels. (A) Confocal microscopy microphotographs of GFAP immunoreactivity was evaluated in hippocampal astrocytes of animals injected intra-cerebroventricularly with 5 × 105 MSC-spheroid or vehicle. Rats that had consumed ethanol for 17 weeks were intra-cerebroventricularly injected with a single dose of 5 × 105 MSC-spheroids or vehicle. After the MSC-spheroid administration the animals remained for one additional week in an ethanol and water free-choice condition, followed by a 2-week ethanol deprivation period and thereafter were allowed a 60-min period of ethanol re-access and euthanized for immunohistochemistry and mRNA studies. Animal consuming only water were used as controls. Scale bar 25 μm. (B left) Thickness and (B right) length of primary astrocytic process evaluated by confocal microscopy and FIJI image analysis software. (C) Level of mRNA of the pro-inflammatory factor MCP-1 in the hippocampus of the same animals, determined by quantitative RT-PCR analysis. Data were normalized against the mRNA levels of the housekeeping genes ß-actin and GAPDH. Data are shown as mean ± SEM. N = 6 per experimental condition. All determinations, *p < 0.05 (see text).