Figure 7.
Profound protective effects of NAm on inflammation, demyelination and axonal loss in the EAE model. A, B, Representative images showing the effects of NAm treatment on infiltration, demyelination, and axonal loss. Transverse sections from 8 weeks p.i. EAE-induced Wlds mice treated with high-dose NAm were stained with Hoechst 33258 and antibodies against MBP and NF (A). Higher magnification of the merged image is shown in B. Scale bars: A, 50 μm; B, 10 μm. C–E, Quantification of average areas of infiltration (C) and demyelination (D), as well as average number of NF+/MBP− fibers in demyelinated areas (E). Both NAm-treated groups showed a significant reduction in infiltration at 2 weeks p.i. (*p < 0.05), and demyelination at both 2 and 8 weeks p.i. (*p < 0.05), but not infiltration at 8 weeks p.i. (p = 0.11, p = 0.10 in wild-type and Wlds mice, respectively) (C, D). Average numbers of preserved fibers in demyelinated areas were also significantly increased in both NAm-treated groups at both time points (**p < 0.001; Student's t test) (E). Quantification of the infiltrated CD4+ cells (F), showing a significant reduction of CD4+ cellular infiltration in both NAm-treated groups (*p < 0.05; Student's t test). Average immune cell numbers per section from six sections of each animal, eight animals per group, were quantified. Error bars indicate SEM.