Figure 4.

Preterm birth reduced the population of GAD67⁺ cells. A, Representative immunofluorescence of cryosections from more premature (28 gw + 26 d postnatal age) and less premature (32 gw + 3 d postnatal age) infant labeled with GAD67-specific antibody. Bottom images are high-magnification views of the boxed areas at the top. Note higher number of GAD67⁺ interneurons in less premature infant compared with more premature infant. Scale bar, 50 μm for the top image and 20 μm for the bottom image. B, Data are shown as mean ± SEM (n = 5 each group). Among preterm infants, GAD67⁺ cells were reduced in number in more premature infants (27–28 gw) compared with less premature infants (32–33 gw) in the upper cortical layer. C, Data are shown as mean ± SEM (n = 5 each group). Among near-term infants, GAD67⁺ cells were comparable between infants of more premature (34–36 gw) and less premature infant (37–39 gw) in both upper and lower cortical layers. *p < 0.05 for more premature versus less premature infants.