Purkinje Cell Dropout Was Prevented by Antipurinergic Therapy.

<p>(A) Mosaic reconstruction of a representative parasagittal section of the cerebellar vermis in an untreated MIA animal (PIC-Sal). Sections were stained for calbindin (green) and neuN (red). Purkinje cells are the bright, large neurons located at the margins of the molecular (green) and granular (red) layers of the cerebellum. Lobules III though X are indicated. MIA animals at 16 weeks of age, showed patchy loss of Purkinje cells that was most striking in lobules VI and VII. (B) Higher magnification of lobule VII in a control (Sal-Sal) animal illustrating normal Purkinje cell numbers. (C) Higher magnification of lobule VII in MIA illustrating nearly complete Purkinje cell dropout, with scattered cells at the boundary between lobules VII and VIII in an animal exposed to poly(IC) during gestation. (D) Quantitation of Lobule VII Purkinje Cells. Animals exposed to poly(IC) during gestation had a 63% reduction in Purkinje cell numbers. This was prevented by suramin treatment (10–20 mg/kg ip qWeek) started at 6 weeks of age (Sal-Sal = 16.0+/−1.8 cells/mm; Sal-Sur = 19.6+/−2.5; PIC-Sal = 5.8+/−1.6, PIC-Sur = 20.4+/−5.4; one-way ANOVA F(3,13) = 5.3; p = 0.013; Newman-Keuls post hoc test; n = 4–5 males per group; age = 16 weeks). Values are expressed as mean +/− SEM.