Figure 4
From: Matrix metalloproteinases and their inhibitors in human traumatic spinal cord injury
MMP-1 in the human spinal cord after traumatic injury. Images were taken from cases with different survival times after SCI in transverse sections stained with the MMP-1 antibody. A: Two days after injury, motoneurons in the perilesional area retained their cytoplasmic MMP-1 immunoreactivity. B: Four days after SCI, MMP-1 immunohistochemistry at the site of injury displayed round to oval cells (arrowheads). C: By 8 days, the lesion site was filled with a high number of MMP-1 immunoreactive cells. Again, more round to oval shaped cells can be seen. D: At 11 days after SCI, the amount of MMP-1 stained cells was dramatically decreased and only single round cells were detectable. E: 4 months after injury, large MMP-1 positive cells could be seen around the site of injury with the morphology of activated astrocytes. F: 8 months after SCI, identifiable neurons around the lesion site demonstrated a staining pattern similar to that of control cases. (A-F, mag. ×260)