Fig. 4

Effects of early maternal immune activation on astrocytes in the prefrontal cortex and hippocampus regions of offspring. A–D Representative images of immunohistochemical staining for glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) in the PFC of rats after early prenatal treatment with Poly I:C (A, C) or vehicle (B, D); n = 15 for Poly I:C group; n = 8 for vehicle group. During puberty (row 1, row 3), there were no significant differences in astrocytes in the two target brain regions. E–H Representative images of immunohistochemical staining for GFAP in the HC of rats after early prenatal treatment with Poly I:C or vehicle; n = 9 for Poly I:C group; n = 7 for vehicle group. Row 2 and row 4: during adulthood, GFAP-positive cells with a hypertrophic morphology were observed in the PFC and HC of offspring of mice exposed to Poly I:C at gestational day 9 (×10)