Figure 5

Neuronal loss following EAE progression is reduced following early tolerisation but still persists despite the absence of further clinical relapses. ChAT positive motor neurones in the ventral horn in normal, naïve control mice (a, N = 3), as EAE progresses at day 29 (b, N = 5), day 58 (c, N = 5) and day 105-crEAE (d, N = 7), following early (e, N = 4) and late (f, N = 7) tolerisation. Quantification of ChAT (g) positive cell counts showing early, progressive neuronal loss. Following early tolerisation neuronal loss was decreased compared to day 105-crEAE (red bar and lines g). However this loss was greater then observed at day 29 (ChAT - red bar and lines g) showing that neuronal loss is ameliorated however still progresses even in the absence of further clinical relapses. Late tolerisation had no effect on this neuronal loss (f and green bar g). NeuN positive neurones in the lateral spinal nucleus (LSN), as demarcated by the white dotted lines, again in normal, naïve control mice (h, n = 3), as EAE progresses at day 29 (I, n = 5), day 58 (j, n = 5), day 105-crEAE (k, n = 4), following early (l, n = 4) and late (m, n = 5) tolerisation. Quantification of NeuN (n) showing early, progressive neuronal loss. Following early tolerisation neuronal loss was decreased compared to day 105-crEAE (red bar and lines n). However this loss was greater then observed at day 29 (red bar and lines n) showing that neuronal loss is ameliorated however still progresses even in the absence of further clinical relapses. Late tolerisation had no effect on this neuronal loss (NeuN-m and green bar n). Scale bar = 100 μm for all images, significance for data, P < 0.01, one-way ANOVA.