Figure 7.
TUDCA prevented neuronal loss after SNL, including serotonergic cell loss, and partially reversed SNL-induced mechanical hypersensitivity. (A) Compared to vehicle-treated rats, TUDCA-treated rats had significantly more Nissl-stained neurons ipsilateral to SNL (*, p<0.05, 2-way ANOVA). (B) TUDCA-treated rats also had significantly more TPH-ir neurons after SNL (*, p<0.05, 2-way ANOVA). In contrast to saline-treated rats, there were no significant differences between the numbers of RVM neurons ipsilateral and contralateral to SNL in TUDCA-treated animals. C. Beginning four days post-SNL, the withdrawal thresholds of the ipsilateral hindpaws of TUDCA-treated rats were significantly higher than those in animals treated with saline (p<.05; 2-way ANOVA). There were no significant differences between the withdrawal thresholds of the contralateral hindpaws at any time point. Inverted triangles = contralateral saline; squares = contralateral TUDCA; circles = ipsilateral TUDCA; triangles = ipsilateral saline.