Figure 6.

Effect of anti-CD45RC treatment on lymphoid cell populations, forelimb muscle strength, and animal growth. Hind limb muscles or spleen from WT or Dmd^mdx (KO) rats were harvested at 12 weeks of age, collagenase digested, and analyzed by cytofluorimetry. (A) Total number of viable CD45⁺TCR⁺CD8⁺CD45RC^high cells (upper panels) or viable CD45⁺TCR⁺CD8⁺CD45RC^low/− (lower panels) cells per gram of skeletal muscle (left panels) and for whole spleen (right panels). ^*p < 0.05 and ^**p < 0.01. (B) Total number of viable CD45⁺TCR⁺CD4⁺CD45RC^high cells (upper panels) or viable CD45⁺TCR⁺CD4⁺CD45RC^low/− (lower panels) cells per gram of skeletal muscle (left panels) and whole spleen (right panels). (C) Total number of viable CD45⁺TCR⁻ CD45RC^high cells per gram of skeletal muscle (left panels) and whole spleen (right panels). (D) Total number of viable CD45+TCR+CD45RC^low/−FoxP3+ cells per gram of skeletal muscle (left panels) and whole spleen (right panels). (E) Representative dot plots of Dmd^mdx 12-week old rat spleen (upper panels) or muscle (lower panels) single-cell suspension, treated with anti CD45RC MAb or with a control MAb, with gating on viable CD45⁺TCR⁺CD4⁺CD45RChigh or low or -Foxp3⁺ cells. (F) Muscle strength in Dmd^mdx rats after treatment with an anti-CD45RC MAb. Wild-type (WT) or Dmd^mdx rats received intraperitoneal injections of the anti-rat CD45RC MAb (clone OX22, 1.5 mg/kg, every 3.5 days) or isotype control MAb (clone 3G8, 1.5 mg/kg, every 3.5 days) from week 2 to 12 when muscle strength was analyzed using a grip test. Each point represents a single animal analyzed in two different experiments. ^*p < 0.05; ns, not statistically significant. Results were obtained from several experiments which were performed using all animal groups in each experiment and analyzed by a blinded operator. (G) Weight curves for animal growth were determined serially. ^****p < 0.0001 for the whole data in the curve between Dmd^mdx and WT rats for both treatments but no difference between Dmd^mdx rats treated with anti-CD45RC vs. isotype control.