Protection of Fecal Microbiota Transplantation in a Mouse Model of Multiple Sclerosis

Figure 3

FMT prevents BBB leakage in EAE. (a) Claudin 5 expression in thoracic spinal cord tissues collected from EAE controls and FMT-treated EAE mice revealed by Western blot with β-tubulin as loading control. (b) Chart of quantified Western blot results showing increased levels of Claudin 5 expression (normalized by β-tubulin) after FMT treatment (; /group; ). (c) Representative immunostaining images of Claudin 5 expression (green) in spinal cord sections. The nucleus was stained with Hoechst (blue). Scale bar: 100 μm. (d) Representative images of Evans blue dye extravasation (red) in the subcortical white matter of brain showing the presence of dye in both blood vessels and brain parenchyma in EAE controls (upper panels) in contrast to appreciably reduced dye presence in brain parenchyma in FMT-treated EAE mice (lower panels). Each right panel shows a high magnification image of the area inside the white box (left). Scale bars: 400 μm (left) and 200 μm (right). Representative brain parenchyma and blood vessels are indicated by arrowheads and arrows, respectively.

(a)

(b)

(c)

(d)