Fig. 1.

Neuroprotective effects of celastrol in MPTP-induced PD mouse model. a Diagram of the experimental design. MPTP (20 mg/kg）or vehicle (saline) was injected intraperitoneally (i.p.) for 5 consecutive days starting on day −4 after acclimation (3 days). Then, mice were i.p. treated with celastrol (10 μg/kg) or vehicle (DMSO) per day for 7 days. Tissues were harvested for molecular analyses at day 26 after the last behavior test. b Representative photomicrographs and unbiased stereological counts of TH staining in SNc, Scale bars 400 μm. Data are mean ± s.e.m.; n = 10. c Protein levels of TH, DAT and β-actin in SNc. Data are mean ± s.e.m.; n = 10. d Time to traverse beam apparatus, time to descend pole, Hind-limb clasping reflex score, fall latency from an accelerating rotarod and gait analysis (e). Data are mean ± s.e.m.; n = 10. f Relative mRNA expression of the indicated genes in SNc. Data are mean ± s.e.m.; n = 8. The one-way ANOVAs were used for statistical analysis followed by Bonferroni's post hoc test. *P < 0.05, **P < 0.01, and ***P < 0.001. ns, not significant.