Fig. 1

Survival and functional impact of mesencephalic grafts in the 6-OHDA and AAV-α-synuclein rat models. a-b Motor function was assessed before injection of an AAV-α-synuclein vector or 6-OHDA (−8 weeks time-point), before transplantation (0 week time-point), and 6 and 12 weeks post-transplantation using the cylinder test a and the amphetamine-induced rotation test (b). Data are expressed as mean ± SEM (n = 8-10 per group). ***P < 0.001 compared to the respective sham control group (t-test). c-d Assessment of graft volume (c) and quantification of the number of graft-derived TH-positive cells (d) showed a reduced survival of the transplant in the AAV-α-synuclein rat model. Data are expressed as mean ± SEM (n = 10-12 per group). *P < 0.05 (t-test). e: Forebrain (upper) and midbrain (lower) sections from all experimental groups were stained for TH to analyze the extent of the lesion and the survival of grafted dopamine neurons. Scale bar: 1.5 mm