Fig. 2

Expression of DKK3, Kremen-1, DVL-1 in the spinal cord following SNI. a, b Mechanical allodynia evaluated by the paw withdraw threshold (PWT) at baseline and 3, 7 and 14 days after surgery. There is no significant difference regarding the PWT among sham and SNI group at baseline. However, the ipsilateral PWT in SNI rats was markedly decreased from day 3 to day 14 (^*p < 0.05, ^***p < 0.001 compared with sham group, n = 6 in each group). In contrast, the contralateral PWT in sham and SNI rats had no significant change during the observation period. c–e qPCR result showed that the mRNA levels of DKK3, Kremen-1, and DVL-1 in SNI rats was markedly decreased from day 3 to day 14 (^****p < 0.0001 compared with sham group, n = 6 in each group). f–h Western blot results showed that the protein level of DKK3, Kremen-1, and DVL-1 in the spinal cord of rats with SNI was markedly decreased from day 3 to day 14 (^****p < 0.0001 compared with sham group, n = 6 in each group). i–n Immunofluorescence result indicated that the expression levels of DKK3, Kremen-1, and DVL-1 in SNI rats spinal dorsal horn was markedly decreased from day 3 to day 14 (^**p < 0.01, ^***p < 0.001, ^****p < 0.0001 compared with sham group, n = 6 in each group)