Fig. 5

Rag1^−/− mice developed colitis after intestine-specific sympathectomy. a Bodyweight of mice over time, comparing mice after sympathectomy (sx) to mice after a sham operation (sham). b Norepinephrine levels in ileum normalized per gram tissue. c Colon weight as a marker of inflammation, normalized for colon length. d Total histology scores as described in Table 3 and goblet cell depletion subscore. Representative pictures are shown of a haematoxylin and eosin (HE) staining of the colon. 10x magnification. e Total endoscopy score at day 14. Representative pictures are shown. f mRNA expression levels in ileum homogenates of interleukin (IL)-22, regenerating islet-derived protein 3 γ (Reg3γ), defensin α (DefA) and mucin 2 (Muc2). g mRNA expression levels of goblet cell marker Muc2 and cytokines IL-1β, IL-6, IL-10, IL-12, IL-22 and tumour necrosis factor (TNF)-α in colon homogenate. f, g Expression in ileum was normalized for reference genes β-actin and hypoxanthine phosphoribosyltransferase (HPRT). Expression in colon was normalized for reference genes ubiquitin and cyclophilin. Expression is relative to the sham group. N = 10–16 mice. Data is expressed as mean (d, Reg3γ and DefA from f and IL-22 and TNF-α from g) or median (a-c, e, IL-22 and Muc2 from f and g) and individual data points or interquartile range is shown. We tested for statistical significant differences with an independent T-test or a Mann-Whitney U test. P-value < 0.05 was considered significant. * P-value < 0.05; ** P-value ≤0.01; *** P-value ≤0.001