Figure 1

There is an increase in small blood vessels in the relapse phase of EAE. Vascular casting shows the vascular pattern of the lumbar spinal cord in the normal rat (A). During acute EAE (B) there is no significant increase in blood vessel numbers. However, in the relapse phase (C) there is an increase of blood vessel numbers, which shows increased tortuosity compared to healthy rats. Quantification using μCT demonstrates that in the thoracic region of the spinal cord during EAE relapse there is no significant increase in blood vessel numbers (D). In contrast, in the lumbar region versus the thoracic region, there is a significant increase in small diameter vessels (all vessels smaller than 24 μm) Student T test (p = 0.011) (E).