Figure 7 .

Brain labile iron status determines abnormal behavior and GABAergic dysfunction. Weanling mice were fed basal control (50 mg iron/kg diet), iron-overload (10,000 mg iron/kg), or iron-deficient (5 mg iron/kg) diet for 4 wk. A) Levels of total iron and labile iron were analyzed by ICP-MS and dihydrorhodamine-based fluorescence assay, respectively. B) Anxiety-like behavior was measured by elevated plus maze test. C) GABA levels in brain were quantified by HPLC–electrochemical detection, and expression of GABAergic receptors was determined by Western blot analysis. Data are presented as means ± sem (n = 4–7/group), and significant differences were analyzed by 2-way ANOVA.