Background
Neuroinflammation mediated by glial activation is identified as a common character during progression of many neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and Parkinson’s disease (PD) [
1,
2]. Microglia, the resident immune cells of the central nervous system (CNS), is considered to play a key role in regulating neurotoxicity mediated by inflammatory response. Microglial activation can be induced by lipopolysaccharide (LPS), interferon (IFN)-γ, or β-amyloid and results in overproduction of inflammatory cytokines. These inflammatory mediators, such as tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), interleukin (IL) -6, IL-1β, glutamate, nitric oxide, and reactive oxygen species, can collectively lead to neuronal damage, resulting in the progress of neurodegenerative diseases [
3]. During this process, ramified resting microglia undergo morphological transformations including deramification, process shortening and thickening, and finally development into its activated amoeboid form [
4]. Therefore, anti-inflammatory treatment via inhibition of microglial activation is regarded as a promising strategy for preventing neurodegenerative diseases in the clinic.
Oxytocin (OT), a nonapeptide produced in the paraventricular and supraoptic nuclei of the hypothalamus, has a wide range of effects in the body. OT exerts its effects via G-protein-coupled receptors, which are expressed abundantly in the central and peripheral nervous systems [
5]. OT plays a role in the endocrine and paracrine activities such as various sexual and maternal behaviors, social recognition, neuromodulation, cognition, aggression, and tolerance development [
6]. Recent data indicate that OT may also have anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant properties and regulate the immune and anti-inflammatory response [
7,
8]. Exogenous OT administration alleviates tissue damage in a variety of animal models of injury [
9‐
11]. Furthermore, co-administration of an OT receptor antagonist blocks the protective effects of OT during cardiac ischemia [
10] or cerebral ischemia in rats [
9]. The protective actions of OT in these models may be associated with decreased levels of circulating pro-inflammatory cytokines [
12,
13] and decreased neutrophil infiltration to the site of injury [
14,
15]. Moreover, OT inhibits LPS-stimulated pro-inflammatory cytokine secretion from macrophages and endothelial cells [
16].
However, little information is available about the effects of OT on neuroinflammation and its underlying molecular mechanisms. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the anti-inflammatory effects of OT on LPS-stimulated microglial activation, and its therapeutic effects on the early stage of neuroinflammation induced by systemic LPS treatment in mice.
Methods
Cell culture
BV-2 cells retain many morphological and functional properties of primary microglia [
17]. Cells in a 5 % CO
2 incubator were maintained in Dulbecco’s modified Eagle medium (DMEM; Hyclone Co., Logan, UT, USA) with 10 % fetal bovine serum (FBS; Hyclone Co.), 2 mM L-glutamine, 100 U/ml penicillin, and 100 μg/ml streptomycin (Sigma-Aldrich, St Louis, MO, USA). For all experiments, BV-2 cells were used at 75–80 % confluency.
Primary microglia were prepared as described previously [
18]. Briefly, the cerebral cortices of mice, aged 1–2 days, devoid of meninges and blood vessels, were dissociated by mild mechanical trituration. The isolated cells were cultured for 14 days in DMEM/F12 (Hyclone Co.) supplemented with 10 % FBS (Hyclone Co.). Then the mixed glial cultures were shaken on an orbital shaker at 250 rpm for 2 h to dislodge microglial cells. Cells were cultured for 7 days before treatment. The experimental protocol was approved by the National Institutes of Health Guide for Care and Use of Laboratory Animals (Publication No. 85-23, revised 1985), and efforts were engaged to minimize the number of animal usage and suffering.
Prior to use in the experiment, plated cells were incubated with serum-free DMEM for 1 h, and then the medium was replaced with serum-free DMEM containing either LPS (from
Escherichia coli, serotype 0127:B8, Sigma-Aldrich) or OT (Sigma-Aldrich) for the various time intervals and concentrations as indicated below. OT was initially dissolved in normal saline. For most experiments, BV-2 cells and primary microglia were added 2 h before LPS (500 ng/ml) stimulation, while controls were treated with the vehicle (normal saline) except where indicated differently. This time point was chosen to minimize the possibility of any direct interactions between OT and LPS [
9].
Cell viability assay
BV-2 cells were seeded in 96-well culture plates at a density of 5 × 104 cells/well. Cell proliferation was analyzed at 24 h after LPS pre-treated with or without differing concentration of OT, using the MTT assay. A volume of 20 μl MTT solution (5 mg/ml) was added to each well, and the cells were incubated for another 4 h in a humidified incubator at 37 °C. Then, after removing the supernatant, 200 μl of dimethylsulfoxide was added to each well and mixed thoroughly for 10 min. The optical density (OD) was measured at 490 nm. Cell viability was expressed as a percentage of viable cells obtained relative to that of controls.
Immunofluorescence imaging
BV-2 cells and primary microglia were fixed in 4 % paraformaldehyde (PFA) for 20 min and blocked with 10 % goat serum in PBS. The glass slides with cells were incubated overnight in a humidified chamber at 4 °C with the following primary antibodies: ionized calcium-binding adapter molecule-1(Iba-1), 1:200, rabbit polyclonal (Wako); OT receptor (OTR), 1:500, goat polyclonal (Abcam, Cambridge, MA, USA). After primary antibody incubation, slides were washed and incubated with the appropriate fluorescent-conjugated secondary antibody (1:500 dilution, Sigma-Aldrich) for 1 h. Images were captured using a Nikon TE2000U microscope. The intensity of Iba-1 signal of each nucleus was counted at least six separate experiments by using Image-Pro Plus 6.0 software.
Intracellular Ca2+ measurement
BV-2 cells grown on glass coverslips were washed three times with extracellular solution containing 150 mM NaCl, 5 mM KCl, 1 mM MgCl2 · 6H2O, 2 mM CaCl2, 1 mM glucose, and 10 mM HEPES (pH 7.4) and incubated with 1 μM Fura-2/AM for 40 min at 37 °C. Coverslips with Fura-2/AM-loaded cells were then mounted on a chamber positioned on the movable stage of an inverted microscope (Olympus IX70, Tokyo, Japan), which is equipped with a calcium imaging system (TILL Photonics). Fluorescence was excited at wavelengths of 340 nm for 150 ms and 380 nm for 50 ms at 1-s intervals by a monochromator (Polychrome IV), and the emitted light was imaged at 510 nm by an intensified cooled charge coupled device (TILL Photonics Image) through an X-70 fluor oil immersion lens (Olympus, Tokyo, Japan) and a 460-nm long-pass barrier filter. F340/F380 fluorescence ratio was recorded and analyzed with TILLVISION 4.0 software, which was used as an indicator of [Ca2+]i independent of intracellular Fura-2 concentration. The amplitude of [Ca2+]i response was defined as the peak of F/F0, where F0 is the average baseline fluorescence before the application of LPS (500 ng) and OT (1 μM), and F represents the fluorescence after the application of LPS and OT.
Animals
BALB/C mice (adult male) weighing 22–25 g were obtained from Shandong University Animal Centre. All mice were housed in a 12-h dark/light cycle, temperature (20 ± 2 °C), and humidity-controlled environment with unlimited access to water and food. In the handling and care of all animals, the International Guiding Principles for Animal Research and Animal Research: Reporting In Vivo Experiments (ARRIVE) guidelines, as stipulated by the World Health Organization and as adopted by the Laboratory Animal Center at Shandong University, were followed. All efforts were made to reduce the number of animals used and their suffering.
Nasal application of OT
Nasal application of OT was found to completely mimic the behavioral effects of OT seen after its intracerebroventricular administration [
18,
19]. For nasal administration, mice received either OT (12 μg/2 × 6 μl) or vehicle (sterile Ringer solution, 2 × 6 μl) as previously described [
19,
20]. Briefly, the amount of 12 μl was distributed with the tip of the pipette and allowed to diffuse into the squamous epithelium of both the left and right rhinarium, these area referred to as the glabrous skin around the nostrils which was highly innervated by free nerve endings [
19,
20]. At the same time, to avoid direct contact of the tip of the pipette with the rhinarium, or direct application into one of the nostrils or in proximity of the philtrum, each of the applications to the left and right rhinarium, respectively, lasted about 1 min. To minimize non-specific stress responses, the experimental animals had 1 week of habituation to the holding position, as well as training to the procedure.
Animal experimental protocol
A peripheral injection of LPS was administered to evoke neuroinflammation in mice as previously described [
4]. LPS was freshly dissolved in sterile-endotoxin-free 0.9 % saline vehicle prior to injection. The LPS group (LPS) was intraperitoneally (i.p.) injected with a single dose of saline (5 mg/kg). In the control group, mice were injected i.p. with equivolume vehicle (0.9 % saline).
In group 1 (sham-operated group), equivolume vehicle (sterile Ringer solution) was nasal administered once 1 h prior to i.p. saline. In group 2 (sham + OT group), OT (2 × 6 μl) was nasal administered once 1 h prior to i.p. saline. In group 3 (LPS group), sterile Ringer solution was nasal administered once 1 h prior to LPS (5 mg/kg) injection. In group 4 (LPS + OT group), OT (2 × 6 μl) was nasal administered once 1 h prior to LPS (5 mg/kg) injection.
Measurement of pro-inflammatory mediators
The prefrontal cortex of brain was removed from mice at 4 h after LPS injection (n = 5 at each group) for measure TNF-α and IL-1β messenger RNA (mRNA) levels by RT-PCR as described above.
The prefrontal cortex was removed from mice at 24 h after LPS injection (n = 10 each group) and homogenized with tissue protein extraction reagent (Pierce Biotechnology, Inc., IL, Rockford, USA) containing protease inhibitors, centrifuged at 12,000g for 10 min and the supernatant was collected to measure TNF-α and IL-1β content by Western blot analysis as described above.
Tissue processing and immunofluorescence
Microglia activation in the brain tissue was observed with immunofluorescence. At 24 h after the LPS injection, the mice were deeply anesthetized, and the brains were fixed through cardiac perfusion with 4 % PFA, then dissected and post-fixed at 4 °C in 4 % PFA. The tissue sections (12 μm) were fixed in 4 % PFA for 10 min and blocked with 10 % goat serum in PBS. Slides were incubated overnight in a humidified chamber at 4 °C with the following primary antibodies: Iba-1(1:200, Abcam); TNF-α (mouse monoclonal, 1:200, Santa Cruz Biotechnology, CA, USA) and glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP)(rabbit polyclonal, 1:200, Abcam). After primary antibody incubation, samples were washed and incubated in the appropriate fluorescent-conjugated secondary antibody (1:600 dilution, Sigma-Aldrich) for 1 h. The slides were counterstained with DAPI for total nuclei counting. Images were captured with a Nikon TE2000U microscope. The microscope fields (×200) of Iba-1 positive cells or TNF-α/Iba-1, TNF-α/GFAP double positive cells in the prefrontal cortex from three different animals were randomly chosen and imaged. The frontal cortex was defined as the frontal region of the isocortex from the Bregma 5.5 to 1.0 mm, and it contained the primary and secondary motor cortices (analyzed at laterals 2.0 and 2.5) and the prefrontal cortex (analyzed at laterals 0.5 and 1.0; including orbitofrontal, cingulate, prelimbic and infralimbic cortices) [
21]. The numbers of Iba-1 positive cells or TNF-α/Iba-1, TNF-α/GFAP double positive cells per field were calculated as the mean of the numbers obtained from the six pictures per mouse. The final data were reported relative to sham controls. Counting was performed in a blinded manner.
Reverse transcription–polymerase chain reaction
Total RNA was extracted from cells and the prefrontal cortex using the Trizol reagent (Gibco, Invitrogen) according to the manufacturer’s instructions. RNA concentration was determined using a spectrophotometer (Bio-Rad. Labs) at 260 nm. Identical amounts of RNA (2 μg) were reversely transcribed into complementary DNA (cDNA) using a commercial reverse transcription–polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) kit (Fermentas, Vilnius, Lithuania) according to the manufacturer’s instructions. cDNA was subsequently amplified by PCR with specific primers. PCR products, separated on a 1.2 % agarose/TAE gel, were visualized by staining with ethidium bromide. The densitometric calculations of these values were normalized to β-actin. The intensity of bands was determined using Image-Pro Plus 6.0 software. The primers: TNF-α: Forward (5′- CGT CAG CCG ATT TGC TAT CT -3′), Reverse (5′- CGG ACT CCG CAA AGT CTA AG -3′); IL-1β: Forward (5′- AAG ATG AAG GGC TGC TTC CAA ACC -3′), Reverse (5′- ATA CTG CCT GCC TGA AGC TCT TGT -3′); iNOS: Forward (5′-CCT CCT CCA CCC TAC CAA GT-3′); Reverse (5′-CAC CCA AAG TGC TTC AGT CA-3′); COX-2: Forward (5′-TGG GTG TGA AAG GAA ATA AGG A-3′); Reverse (5′- GAA GTG CTG GGC AAA GAA TG-3′); OTR: Reverse (5′- TGG CCT TCA TCG TG TGC TGG A--3′), Reverse (5′- AGA GGA AGC GCT GCA CGA GTT--3′), β-actin: Forward (5′-TGG AAT CCT GTG GCA TCC ATG AAA C-3′, Reverse (5′- TAA AAC GCA GCT CAG TAA CAG TCC G-3′).
Western blot analysis
Protein concentration of cells and the prefrontal cortex were determined using a BCA protein assay kit (Pierce Biotechnology, Inc.). A quantity of 20–40 μg of total proteins was loaded onto a 10–12 % gradient polyacrylamide gel, electrophoretically transferred to a polyvinylidene difluoride membrane, and probed with the following primary antibodies: TNF-α (1:1000, Santa Cruz), IL-1β (1:1000, Santa Cruz), phospho-NF-κB p65(S536) antibody (1:500, Cell Signaling Tech. MA, USA), NF-κB (1:1000, Cell Signaling), phospho-p38 antibody (1:1000, Cell Signaling), p38 antibody (1:1000, Cell Signaling), phospho-JNK antibody (1:1000, Santa Cruz Biotechnology, CA, USA), JNK antibody (1:1000, Santa Cruz Biotechnology), phospho-extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK)1/2 (1:2000, Cell Signaling), ERK1/2 (1:2000; Cell Signaling), OTR (1:2000, Abcam), inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) (1:500, Cell Signaling), cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2, 1:1000, Proteintech Group, Inc., CA, USA). β-actin (1:2000; Sigma-Aldrich) was used as an internal control. Secondary antibodies were horseradish peroxidase conjugated to goat/mouse anti-rabbit IgG (1:8000, Sigma-Aldrich). The membranes were developed using an enhanced chemiluminescence detection system (Pierce, Rockford, IL).
Statistical analysis
Quantitative data were presented as the mean ± S.D. and statistical analysis of data was performed with a one-way ANOVA using the post hoc Tukey test for multiple comparisons of means. Differences were considered statistically significant if the p value was <0.05.
Discussion
The present study demonstrated that OT suppressed the expression of TNF-α, IL-1β, COX-2, and iNOS at the mRNA and proteins levels and reduced the elevation of [Ca2+]i in LPS-stimulated microglia cells. The activation of ERK and p38 MAPK by LPS was also suppressed by OT in vitro. Moreover, OT exhibited suppressive effects against neuroinflammation induced by systemic LPS treatment in vivo. These data suggested that OT would be a potential therapeutic agent for alleviating neuroinflammatory processes in neurodegenerative diseases.
Microglia-mediated neurotoxicity is a hallmark of the pathogenesis of various neurodegenerative diseases [
23]. High levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines and chemokines released by excessive activated microglia are implicated in the process of neuronal injury [
3]. Thus, therapeutic approaches targeting activated microglia may be a promising treatment of these diseases. Many recent studies have reported that anti-inflammatory agents exert their neuroprotective effects through inhibition of production of pro-inflammatory mediators [
24,
25]. OT exhibited anti-inflammatory functions in rodents by reducing the secretion of TNF-α, IL-6, and IL-8 in vitro [
16] and in vivo [
26,
27]. In addition, OT regulated the immune response by dampening anti-inflammatory cytokines, such as IL-1ra and IL-4 [
26]. Importantly, OT attenuated LPS-induced MHC Class II expression in cultured microglia [
9]. In the current study, OT pre-treatment suppressed the LPS-induced gene and protein of TNF-α, IL-1β, COX-2, and iNOS levels in vitro and in vivo, showing a potential anti-inflammatory capacity in microglia.
Microglia are able to undergo a variety of morphological and functional changes in response to various immunological stimuli. Quiescent microglia exhibit a ramified cell morphology with relatively small size and numerous thin processes, whereas activated microglia become progressively less ramified and quickly develop an enlarged cell body with several short, thickened processes, resulting in a rounded ameboid-like appearance [
4,
28]. In the present in vitro and in vivo study, we found that activated microglia were shown by increased cell size, irregular shape, shortened and thickened processes, and intensified Iba-1 staining in LPS-treated microglial cells and mouse brains, while OT lessened the microglia morphological changes according to immunohistochemical analysis. Moreover, OT significantly reduced Iba-1 protein expression in the brain compared to that of LPS group. Iba-1 is specifically and highly expressed in macrophage and microglia [
29,
30]. Previous studies showed that anti-Iba-1 antibody was found to specifically recognize ramified microglia in normal rodent brain, and the expression of Iba-1 was strongly upregulated in activated microglia [
31]. Therefore, Iba-1 may play significant roles in the regulation of some immunological and pathophysiological functions of microglia and serve as a novel marker of detecting the activation of microglia. Moreover, double immunofluorescence staining has shown that expression of TNF-α was detected in activated mciroglia as verified by their colocalization with Iba-1. In the current study, OT pre-treatment attenuated LPS-induced TNF-α/Iba-1 expression, indicating considerable inhibitory effects of OT on overactivated microglia via suppressing pro-inflammatory cytokine productions. In this study, we also saw LPS-induced neuroinflammation as evidenced by increases in TNF-α/GFAP immunostaining. However, OT had no effect on the LPS-induced increase in TNF-α/GFAP immunostaining, suggesting that anti-inflammatory effect of OT may be independent of the inhibition of astrocytic activation.
COX-2 and iNOS are the important inflammatory mediators during the inflammation process. COX-2, a key rate-limiting enzyme in arachidonic acid metabolism, is mainly induced in microglia by pro-inflammatory stimuli and plays important roles in inflammatory and immune responses [
32,
33]. Several studies have demonstrated that COX-2 is markedly upregulated in primary brain microglia and in BV-2 microglial cells after LPS treatment [
34,
35]. iNOS is expressed in some pathophysiological conditions and can produce abundant NO in response to inflammatory signals, such as LPS and cytokines [
35]. Therefore, attenuating the induction of COX-2 and iNOS in activated microglia could inhibit neuroinflammation. In our study, LPS induced an increasing expression of COX-2 and iNOS in microglia. However, pre-treatment with OT showed an inhibition of COX-2 and iNOS protein and mRNA expression levels following LPS stimulation in vivo and in vitro.
Microglial cells express several receptors such as purinergic P2Y, adrenergic α1, thrombin, endothelin, platelet-activating factor, and cytokine/chemokine receptors, coupled to the second messenger inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate IP
3, and mediate release of Ca
2+ from intracellular stores [
36]. Ca
2+ release often is followed by a prolonged secondary phase that is due to store-operated (capacitative) Ca
2+ entry (SOCE). The intracellular calcium concentration ([Ca
2+]i) influences multiple cellular functions, including enzyme or release activities. Microglia respond to CNS damage by upregulating functions that involve Ca
2+ signaling, e.g., proliferation, migration, phagocytosis, and production of NO, IL, cytokines, and chemokines. Several factors have been identified to regulate the Ca
2+ level in microglial cells. Cytokines, such as TNF-α, IL-1β, and interferon gamma (IFN-γ), induce an increase in [Ca
2+]
i in microglia [
37], and LPS also increases the prolonged component of [Ca
2+]i and this Ca
2+ increase is a prerequisite for the release of NO and cytokines [
38]. In the present study, in good agreement with these previous studies, we demonstrated that LPS exposure significantly induced Ca
2+ transients in microglial cells, while OT could abolish LPS-induced increases in [Ca
2+]
i. and cytokines levels, indicating OT effects on [Ca
2+]
i from microglia activation may contribute to its anti-inflammatory actions. However, the direct correlation between the change in intracellular Ca
2+ and anti-inflammatory actions of OT has not been documented.
LPS, an important structural component of the outer membrane of Gram-negative bacteria, binds to Toll-like receptor 4 and evokes intracellular inflammatory signaling cascades including NF-
κB, MAPKs, and IL-1 receptor-associated kinase activation [
39]. NF-
κB is known to upregulate the expressions of cytokines, chemokines, adhesion molecules, acute phase proteins, and inducible effector enzymes. NF-
κB is composed of several protein subunits, among which p65 has been extensively studied [
40]. As the expression of these pro-inflammatory mediators is modulated by NF-
κB, blocking NF-
κB transcriptional activity may be an important target for treating inflammatory diseases. In line with these findings, the data of our study showed that inflammatory cytokine production and NF-
κB activation were increased in LPS-stimulated microglia. However, the NF-
κB activation by LPS was not suppressed by OT pre-treatment, suggesting that inhibition of pro-inflammatory factors by OT was not mediated through blockade of NF-
κB activation.
MAP kinases are also crucial in regulating the pro-inflammatory substances such as TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-6, iNOS, and monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 expression in LPS-stimulated microglia cells [
41,
42]. Corroborating these findings, the present results showed that increased concentrations of pro-inflammatory cytokines resulting from LPS treatment were accompanied by phosphorylation of ERK, p38, and JNK MAPK in microglial cells. Of particular significance to the present report were the findings that OT pre-treatment prevented phosphorylation of ERK and p38 MAPK, but not JNK and, in this way, reduced the upregulation of pro-inflammatory cytokines. However, Rimoldi et al. reported that stimulation of OTR with OT is associated with EGFR transactivation and ERK activation in HEK293 cells, resulting in opposite effects on cell growth [
43]. And treatment with OT prevented the lethal reperfusion injury of H9c2 cardiomyoblasts and increased ERK phosphorylation [
44]. It is important to mention that administration of OT in vivo effectively improved autism spectrum disorder-like symptoms, associated with inhibited phosphorylation of ERK in lesioned medial amygdalae [
45]. One of the reasons for these inconsistencies could be due to the different cells used as well as the stimulating condition.
In the past decade, the structure and function of the OTR system have been detected and investigated in CNS [
5]. For example, experiments with primary cell cultures showed that OTR are localized both on hypothalamic neurons and astrocytes [
46]. It has been reported that OT concentration was increased in the temporal cortex and hippocampus of Alzheimer brains, but was normal in all other regions examined [
47]. The higher level of OTR methylation was associated with decreased functional coupling of amygdala, which involved in affect appraisal and emotion regulation [
48]. The OT mRNA level was increased after acute immobilization stress exposed to rats [
49]. In this study, we found that OTR was expressed in microglial cells, and the mRNA and protein levels of OTR were increased after LPS stimulation.
In this regard, it is important to note that two recent studies indicated that OT did not attenuate inflammatory cytokine production following LPS stimulation in healthy human monocytes or macrophages in vitro [
26,
50]. However, Clodi et al. reported that OT attenuated the endocrine and cytokine activation following LPS administration in healthy humans in vivo [
26]. Similar results were also reported by other authors, for example, Szeto et al. demonstrated that OT inhibited LPS-stimulated pro-inflammatory cytokines secretion from human cancer cell line in vitro [
16]. In addition, in our study, OT can abrogate LPS-induced microglial activation and reduce subsequent release of pro-inflammatory factors in murine cell line and primary cell. There are a number of reasons for the inconsistencies in anti-inflammatory effects of OT. For example, the healthy human cells behave differently from human cancer cell line, perhaps being less sensitive to OT than human cancer cells, or due to differences in how OTR is expressed. Thus, it may limit OT as a human therapeutic agent. Another reason for the inconsistencies is dependent on specific micro-environmental conditions which could be not replicated in vivo. There are also different functions between microglia and macrophage. At last, different stimulating condition used in these studies is also the reason for these inconsistencies, such as the time of LPS and OT incubation, the concentration of LPS and OT.
There are several limitations to our study. First, this is preliminary evidence found in a mouse model. Moreover, the studies of OT’s anti-inflammatory properties mainly based on animal models and human cancer cell lines [
16,
51]. As mentioned above, few studies have investigated healthy humans and/or their cells and the results were inconsistent with animal models and human cancer cell lines [
26,
50]. Thus, additional research in healthy humans’ microglia is needed in the future work. Second, the direct correlation between the change in OTR and LPS actions in microglia has not been documented. Finally, the route, timing, and dosage of OT treatment need to be further elucidated.
Authors’ contributions
ZW was involved in study design and data interpretation and writing of the manuscript; LY performed the majority of the laboratory work and contributed to the analysis of data; YG, GHL, and XEW were responsible for the Western blot. SL and TL were involved in the animal model. DXL and AJH were involved in manuscript editing. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.