Fig. 3

Microglia depletion alters mechanical characterization after SCI. (A) Sagittal immunofluorescence images for the Cx43 (red) and DAPI (blue) from uninjured mice and injured mice treated with vehicle and PLX5622 at 7 and14 dpi. The lesion core was marked with the asterisks. Scale bar: 100 μm. (B) Percentage quantification of Cx43⁺ area. (C) Typical immunofluorescence images of CD68 (red) and DAPI (blue) in the penumbra region from injured mice treated as above at 14 dpi. Scale bar: 20 μm. (D) Percentage quantification of CD68⁺ area in different sizes. (E) Sagittal immunofluorescence images of NeuN⁺ neurons (red) and GFAP⁺ astrocytes in Z1-Z3 zones neighboring the central lesion core in mice treated as above at 14 dpi. Scale bar: 200 μm. (F) Quantification the numbers of NeuN⁺ neurons. (G) The BMS score was used to evaluate locomotor function at 0, 1, 3, 7, and 14 dpi between vehicle and PLX5622 groups. n = 3 animals in (B), (D), and (F). n = 8 animals in (G). ns, no significance; *P < 0.05, **P < 0.01, ***P < 0.001, ****P < 0.0001 by two-way ANOVA