Norfluoxetine Prevents Degeneration of Dopamine Neurons by Inhibiting Microglia-Derived Oxidative Stress in an MPTP Mouse Model of Parkinson’s Disease

Figure 3

Norfluoxetine decreases MPTP-induced microglial activation and oxidant production in the substantia nigra in vivo. Animals receiving PBS as a control (a, e), norfluoxetine (5 mg/kg per day) alone (b, f), MPTP (c, g), and MPTP + norfluoxetine (d, h) were sacrificed 3 days after the last MPTP injection. Brain tissues were cut and substantia nigra (SN) was immunostained with an antibody for MAC-1 to label microglia (a-d) and prepared for hydroethidine histochemistry to detect oxidant production (e-h). Insets show higher magnifications of (a-d), respectively. Five to seven animals were used for each experimental group. Dotted lines indicate the SNpc. Scale bar: 300 μm.

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