Figure 5

IKK2-CA expression results in a degeneration of DG neurons in the GCL. (A) Nissl staining illustrates degeneration in the DG of IKK2^nCA mice at the age of 9M (n = 7). (B) Immunofluorescent staining of kryosections with NeuN (green) confirms that the cells lost in the dentate gyrus are GCL neurons. Co-staining with DAPI (blue) was performed for visualising the nuclei (n = 3). (C) Representative images of Nissl-stained sections depict a progressive, age-dependent degeneration in the DG of IKK2^nCA mice from 3M to 9M of age (n = 6-8). (D) Quantification of cell numbers in the CA1 region and DG manifest an ongoing cell loss specifically in both blades of the dentate gyrus in a progressive manner (n = 6-8). (E) The anti-apoptotic genes Bcl2 and Bcl2l1 (Bcl-xL) are downregulated in the hippocampus of IKK2^nCA mice at 9M as indicated by qRT-PCR analysis (n = 4-7). (A-E) Co = wild type and single transgenic littermate controls, IKK2^nCA = transgenic mice with neuron-specific expression of constitutively active IKK2. Scale bar: 50 μm. All data are shown as mean ± SEM. P-values are derived from two-tailed-unpaired student’s t test. * p < 0.01.