Fig. 6
From: Role of P2 X7 receptor during focused ultrasound induced blood brain barrier modulation
Graphical summary of the study. (a) A 0.5-MHz transducer was placed on the skull of rats, and sonication was performed. Microbubbles inside the vessels affected by LiFUS energy loosened the BBB to make it permeable. The hippocampal area was the main region analyzed. (b) Compared to the control, in the LiFUS treated group, the upregulated expression of P2 X7 receptor, NLRP3, and IL-1ß was observed, accompanied by a decrease in the expression level of the tight junction proteins and RNA. Consequently, the leakage of the Evans blue dye in the parenchyma was increased compared to that in the control conditions. In the antagonist-treated group, changes in protein and RNA expression levels were observed, but they did not reach statistical significance. The amount of Evans blue dye leakage was also not significant. (c) Although LiFUS induces the temporal upregulation of markers related to the inflammatory responses, including NLRP3, IL-1ß, and NF-κB, this technique is safe as it does not reach a level causing cell damage or hemorrhage to the sonicated area.
