Fig. 2

Pinocembrin treatment prevents IH-induced neuroinflammation via inhibiting microglia-mediated inflammation. a The typical HE staining was performed on the hippocampus of mice. IH exposure resulted in a neuronal degeneration in CA1 hippocampus (black arrow), which can be alleviated by pinocembrin treatment (40 mg/kg). b The neuronal apoptosis was detected using TUNEL staining. Representative immunofluorescent micrographs for TUNEL (green) staining from the hippocampus region of each group. Bar = 50 μm. Microglia were stained with ionized calcium-binding adapter molecule 1 (Iba1) antibody. IH exposure significantly increased the infiltration of microglia in hippocampus tissues, which can be alleviated by pinocembrin treatment. Bar = 20 μm. c Quantitative analyses of the number of apoptotic cells and microglia. d Pinocembrin could significantly decrease the secretion of IH-induced inflammatory cytokine (TNF-α, iNOS, COX-2, IL-6, and IL-1β) in the hippocampus of mice. The expressions of mRNAs were analyzed by qRT-PCR and normalized to GAPDH. ^#p < 0.01 vs. the control group; *p < 0.05 vs. the IH group; **p < 0.01 vs. the IH group