Fig. 7
The effects of ZIKV infection on the induction of inflammatory responses in mice. a–c C57BL/6 WT mice (5 weeks old, male) were pretreated with DMSO (n = 6) or Ac-YVAD-cmk (8 mg/kg) (n = 6) by intraperitoneal injection for 30 mice and then infected with ZIKV (5 × 105 PFU) (n = 6) or treated with PBS (n = 6) for 2 days. At 0, 1, and 2 days posttreatment, the levels of IL-1β protein in mice sera were determined by ELISA (a) and the mice body weights were evaluated (b). Data shown are whiskers: Min.–max.; *P < 0.05, **P < 0.01, ***P < 0.0001 (one-way ANOVA with Tukey’s post-hoc test) (a). Data shown are means ± s.e.m (b). At 2 days posttreatment, the splenomegaly and splenic index (spleen weight (mg)/body weight (g) × 10) of treated mice was evaluated (c). Data shown are whiskers: Min.–max.; **P < 0.01, ***P < 0.0001 (one-way ANOVA with Tukey’s post-hoc test). d–k A129 mice (6 weeks old) (n = 7; 4 males and 3 females) were infected with ZIKV (5 × 105 PFU) for the indicated times. A129 mice (6 weeks old) (n = 3; 2 males and 1 female) were treated with PBS as Mock-infection. d–i At 10 days posttreatment, mice brain tissue (d) and spleen tissue (e) were stained with hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) and examined using a light microscope, and the sections of mice brain tissue (f), spleen tissue (g), liver tissue (h), and kidney tissue (i) were stained with DAPI to label nuclei (blue) and an antibody against ZIKV E protein (red) and examined by confocal microscopy. Scale bar of the brain (left) is 200 μm. Scale bar of the brain (right) is 100 μm. Scale bar of the spleen is 500 μm (d). Scale bar of the liver is 100 μm. Scale bar of the kidney is 500 μm (e). Scale bar is 100 μm (f–i). (j, k) At 0, 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, and 12 days posttreatment, the mice body weights (j) and survival rates (k) were evaluated. Data shown are means ± s.e.m (j)
