Fig. 3

Effect of OttaBac^® on microglia resident in the prefrontal cortex. a Histogram showing the enhanced microglial density in the prefrontal cortex of MSPLA and MSOB group, when compared to their nMSPLA and MSOB counterparts. b Graph illustrating the increased area soma of the MSPLA mice compared to the nMSPLA group and the reversed phenotype after treatment with OB. c–i Diagrams showing modification of the microglia morphology towards an activated phenotype (priming) in the MSPLA group and the therapeutic effect exerted by OB on the MSOB group in term of the following parameters extrapolated from Sholl analysis: ending radius (c), intersecting radii (d), and sum and max intersection (e, f). f and g show a main effect of MS in decreasing mean intersection (effect of MS: F(_{1, 16}) = 15.31, p = 0.0013, g) and max intersection radius (effect of MS: F(_{1, 16}) = 6.01, p = 0.026, h). i Histogram showing that the ramification index is similar among the 4 groups analyzed. Number of animals/group = 5. j Representative images displaying the morphological changes (retraction of the processes and enlargement of area soma) observed in prefrontal cortex microglia of the MSPLA mice groups, as compared to the nMSPLA, nMSOB, and MSOB groups. k–l Graphs showing a reduction in the expression of microglial homeostatic genes Olfml3 (k) and Tmem119 (l) in the MSPLA group, compared to the nMSPLA control group. Downregulation is not observed in the MSOB group. Number of animals = 5 (nMSPLA, nMSOB, MSOB) and 4 MSPLA. Statistical significance: *p < 0.05, **p < 0.01, and ***p < 0.001. Two-way ANOVA analysis, by Bonferroni post hoc tests. Scale bar: 30 μm