Figure 1

Neuroprotective effects of riluzole (4 or 8 mg/kg) given 1 hour before and for 7 days post-lesion in the 6-OHDA rat model of PD. A. Effect of riluzole or vehicle on ipsilateral rotations in lesioned rats measured between 25-70 minutes after amphetamine administration. B. Tyrosine Hydroxylase (TH) immunoreactive neurones in the substantia nigra pars compacta (SNpc), scale bar = 0.5 mm. C shows quantification of TH positive cells in SNpc on the side ipsilateral to the lesion ± SEM, expressed as a % of the unlesioned, intact side (n = 8 per group), * = p < 0.05, One-Way Anova followed by Bonferroni's test. D. Sections at the level of the striatum stained for TH immunoreactivity. E. Western blot data shows loss of TH immunoreactivity on lesioned side which is reduced in animals treated with riluzole (8 mg/kg). F shows these data quantified: for each animal the TH band intensity is divided by the band density of a housekeeping protein, β-tubulin and expressed as % of the intact side ± SEM (n = 8), * = p < 0.05, unpaired t-test.