Fig. 1. Conditional knockout of Cp in murine astrocytes impaired cognitive function and synaptic plasticity in the cerebral cortex and hippocampus.

A-D MWM test of the Cp^flox/flox and Cp^GfapcKO mice. The latency time (A) and distance (B) to find the platform were recorded during the training trials from the 1^st day to the 5^th day. The platform was visible above the water during the 1^st and 2^nd day while hidden during the 3^rd to 5^th day. After training trails, the number of times the mice passed the hidden platform area (C) and the percentage of target quadrant passing time were recorded (D) on the 6^th day when the platform was removed and the mice were allowed to search for the area. (n = 13 for Cp^flox/flox group, n = 12 for Cp^GfapcKO group). E-F Conditional Fear Memory was tested using cued (E) and contextual (F) fear conditioning, and the percentage of freezing time was recorded after training (n = 10). G-J SYN and PSD95 protein levels in the cerebral cortex (G) and hippocampus (I), as detected by western blot analysis. β-actin was used as an internal reference. Densitometric analysis of the quantity of SYN and PSD-95 levels in the cerebral cortex (H) and hippocampus (J) are shown in the chart. (n = 3). K-N Synaptic density was assessed in the cerebral cortex (K) and hippocampus (M) by TEM; quantification of the number of synapses per 100 μm² from the cerebral cortex (L) and hippocampus (N) are shown in the chart (n = 12 fields from 3 mice in cerebral cortex per group; n = 11 fields from 3 mice in hippocampus per group) Scale bar: 500 nm. O-Q: Golgi staining of the structural dendrites of the hippocampus and cerebral cortex (O) and the number of spines in the cerebral cortex (P) and hippocampus (Q) (n = 12 fields from 4 mice for Cp^flox/flox group and n = 14 fields from 4 mice for Cp^GfapcKO group in cerebral cortex; n = 13 fields from 4 mice for Cp^flox/flox group and n = 15 fields from 4 mice for Cp^GfapcKO group in hippocampus) were quantified after Golgi staining. R-U: The relative 5-HT and NE concentrations in the cerebral cortex (R-S) and hippocampus (T-U) were measured by HPLC in Cp^flox/flox and Cp^GfapcKO mice. The data are normalized to the levels in the control group (n = 4 per group in R-T; n = 4 for the Cp^flox/flox group and n = 3 for the Cp^GfapcKO group in the chart (U). V-Y: Immunofluorescence staining of DCX (V) and Ki67 (W) in the DG of the hippocampus in Cp^flox/flox and Cp^GfapcKO mice. Quantification of the number of the DCX- and Ki67-positive cells is presented in charts X (n = 4) and Y (n = 3); DAPI was used for nuclear staining. Scale bar: 200 μm. All the data are presented as the mean ± SEM; *p < 0.05; **p < 0.01; ***p < 0.001 vs. Cp^flox/flox.