Fig. 5

Systemic LPS enhances p38-MAPK phosphorylation in phrenic motor neurons. a Double immunofluorescent staining illustrating phosphorylated p38-MAPK (red) with the retrograde tracer (green) Cholera toxin B fragment (CtB) in phrenic motor neurons in the ventral horn of the cervical spinal cord. Representative × 20 magnification of the C4 segment of the spinal cord reveals minimal staining for phospho p38-MAPK (arrow heads) in phrenic motor neurons in a vehicle treated rat. In contrast, phospho p38-MAPK staining is enhanced in phrenic motor neurons (and non-phrenic cells) following LPS treatment (arrows). b Average group data demonstrating that systemic LPS significantly enhances phosphorylated p38-MAPK levels within CtB-positive phrenic motor neurons as measured by optical density analysis. Data are means ± S.E. *p < 0.05 indicating significant difference compared to vehicle treated rats. A.U., arbitrary units