Fig 2: STG treatment protects the hippocampal synaptic plasticity impairment in PTSD mice. (A) Representative bands of synaptic plasticity-related factors (PSD95, BDNF, p-ERK, t-ERK, p-CREB, t-CREB), and α-tubulin proteins in the hippocampus. (B) Quantification of the ratio of PSD95/α-tubulin, BDNF/α-tubulin, p-ERK/t-ERK, and p-CREB/t-CREB by densitometric analysis, data are expressed as the mean ± SEM (n = 4 mice/group). (C) The quantification of mRNA expression of synaptic plasticity-related genes (PSD95, BDNF, SYP, NeuroD2, NeuroD6, Calb1, CCK, TAC1, and Stx1a) in the hippocampus. (D) Representative confocal images of the colocalization of DCX (red) in the dentate gyrus of the hippocampus. Categories AB are indicated by an asterisk, CD by an arrowhead, and EF by an arrow. Scale bar: 50 μm. (E) Quantification of total DCX+ cells in the dentate gyrus of each group (n = 10 sections/5 mice/group). (F) Categorization of dendritic morphology from DCX+ cells in the dentate gyrus of the hippocampus. Category A, No processes; Category B, Short process; Category C, Medium process; Category D, Process reaching molecular layer; Category E, One dendrite branching in the molecular layer; Category F, Delicate dendritic tree branching in the granule cell layer (GCL) with quantification of the morphological distribution and number corresponding to each category. (G) Quantification of the number of DCX+ cells in each category. Data are expressed as the mean ± SEM (n = 10 sections/5 mice/group); * p < 0.05, ** p < 0.01, *** p < 0.001, **** p < 0.0001. BDNF, brain-derived neurotrophic factor; Calb1, calbindin 1; CCK, cholecystokinin; CON, control mice; CREB, cAMP response element-binding protein; DCX, doublecortin; ERK, extracellular signal-regulated kinase; NeuroD2, neurogenic differentiation factor 2; NeuroD6, neurogenic differentiation factor 6; p-, phosphorylated-; PSD95, postsynaptic density protein 95; PTSD, post-traumatic stress disorder; STG, stigmasterol; Stx1a, syntaxin 1a; SYP, synaptophysin; t-, total-; TAC1, tachykinin precursor 1.