Figure 4

Microglial activation in the injured brain. CD11b immunostaining demonstrated the ramified resting morphology of microglia on the uninjured, contralateral side of the brain (A &B). This same morphology was seen on the ipsilateral side of the brain in areas less affected by the trauma (C). In damaged brain regions, the microglia were activated and underwent a morphological change, becoming amoeboid in shape (D). Both morphologies can be seen in the hippocampal region where there are amoeboid microglia in the areas of damage and ramified microglia in the surround (E). The same section was counterstained with DAPI to demonstrate the overall cellular anatomy of the region (F). CD11b: green; DAPI: blue. Scale bars: 200 μm ( A,B), 100 μm (C-F).