Differential severity of EAE in B6.<i>Baff^−/−</i> and B6.BTg mice and its association with a Th17 profile.

<p>Panel A: The indicated mice were immunized with MOG_35–55 in CFA and evaluated for clinical EAE. Results (mean ± SEM) are the aggregate of 3 independent experiments (each containing ≥3 mice per cohort). *, p<0.05; **, p<0.01; ***, p<0.001 in comparison to WT mice at the indicated time points. Panel B: T cells from the draining LN of the indicated mice were stimulated with PMA + ionomycin in the presence of brefeldin A as in <a href="http://www.plosone.org/article/info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0023629#pone-0023629-g002" target="_blank">Figure 2</a> and stained for surface CD4 or CD8 and intracellular IL-17 or IFNγ. The values in the upper left quadrants in each tracing indicate the percentages of IL-17⁺ cells (within the CD4⁺ population) in that sample, and the values in the lower right quadrants indicate the percentages of IFNγ⁺ cells (within the CD4⁺ population). Results from a representative mouse from each cohort are shown. Panel C: Results are presented for CD4⁺IL-17⁺ cells for the 3 mice in each cohort. Panel D: Draining LN cells from the MOG_35–55 peptide-immunized mice either were (+) or were not (−) cultured with MOG_35–55 peptide for 3 days. Percentages of CD4⁺IL-17⁺ cells were determined. Results are presented for the 6 mice in each cohort (left) or a representative mouse from each cohort (right). ***, p<0.001. Panel E: Supernatants from the cultures in panel D were assayed for IL-17A. Results are presented as mean ± SEM. Panel F: The indicated mice were sacrificed on day 25 post-immunization, and sections of their brains and spinal cords were stained with H&E and immunostained for IL-17. Results are representative of the 6 mice in each cohort. Original magnification is 400×.