Figure 4.

Effect of metformin on the spinal cord lesion size in SCI mice at 14 days post-injury.

(A–C) Longitudinal sections of mouse spinal cords were immunostained with an antibody against GFAP (green, stained by Alexa Fluor® 488), which outlines the boundary of the lesion site. Scale bar: 500 μm. The cavity areas in the 3 dpi group and the 0 dpi group are significantly smaller than those in the control group. (D) Quantitation of the lesion area (delineated by GFAP astroglial scar). Data are presented as the mean ± SEM (n = 5). *P < 0.05, ***P < 0.001 (one-way analysis of variance followed by Bonferroni post hoc test). Control: Vehicle treated; 0 dpi or 3 dpi: the first dose of metformin given immediately or 3 days post SCI, respectively. GFAP: Glial fibrillary acidic protein; SCI: spinal cord injury.