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. 2022 Mar 1;11:e73777. doi: 10.7554/eLife.73777

Figure 5. Gut short-chain fatty acid receptors promote activation of neurons in the dorsal horn of the spinal cord: roles for both FFA2 and FFA3 (A).

2 hr after introduction of saline, C3 or 4-methoxy-3-methyl-benzoic acid (MOMBA) into the colon of wild-type C57BL/6, hFFA2-DREADD-HA, or CRE-MINUS mice the number of c-Fos-expressing cells in the dorsal horn of the spinal cord was quantified. Data points represent individual animals. C3 increased c-Fos-expressing cells in wild-type (*p < 0.05) and hFFA2-DREADD-HA-expressing mice, MOMBA also did so in hFFA2-DREADD-HA expressing (*p < 0.05) but not CRE-MINUS mice (unpaired t-test). Representative images of dorsal horn from C57BL/6 plus saline (B), or plus C3 (C); hFFA2-DREADD-HA plus saline (D), or plus MOMBA (E); CRE-MINUS plus saline (F), or plus MOMBA (G) treatments are shown for illustration. Scale bar = 50 µm.

Figure 5—source data 1. c-Fos-expressing cells per mm3 for Figure 5.

Figure 5.

Figure 5—figure supplement 1. Spinal c-Fos expression induced by activation of short-chain fatty acid (SCFA) receptors.

Figure 5—figure supplement 1.

(A) Representative images of dorsal horn from C57BL/6 (A: top panels) and hFFA2-DREADD-HA (A: bottom panels) show coexpression of c-Fos (green) and NeuN (red). Scale bar = 50 µm. (B) Preadministration of granisetron (1 mM) did not block spinal c-Fos expression in response to C3 or 4-methoxy-3-methyl-benzoic acid (MOMBA) in anesthetized hFFA2-DREADD-HA mice. Data points represent individual animals (p > 0.05) (unpaired t-test).