Fig. 6

Germ-free environment alters astrocyte morphology and C3 area in a similar manner to short-term abx. (A) Representative GFAP, C3, and Aβ merged astrocyte z-stack maximum projections (a, g), IMARIS 3D reconstructions (e, k), and IMARIS filament 3D reconstructions (f, l) for SPF M (a-f) and GF M (g-l). GFAP (b, h), C3 (c, i), and Aβ (d, j) shown as separate channels from merged images. (B) Quantification and comparison of astrocyte mean process length sum (µm). (C) Astrocyte mean process area sum (µm²). (D) Astrocyte mean process volume sum (µm³). (E) Astrocyte soma area/GFAP area. (F) Astrocyte C3 area/GFAP area. (G) Astrocyte mean number of processes. (H) Astrocyte mean number of process branch points. (I) Astrocyte mean number of process terminal points between SPF male and GF male mice. M = male. Data expressed as mean ± standard deviation. SPF M N = 9, GF M N = 10. Statistics calculated using two-tailed unpaired student’s t-tests. 4 sections used per animal. * denotes a p-value ≤ 0.05, ** indicates p-value ≤ 0.01, *** indicates p-value ≤ 0.001, and **** indicates a p-value of ≤ 0.0001. Scale bars indicate 10 µm