Figure 1

Phosphorylation of p38 during the course of mechanical allodynia. A: Representative immunoblots of pp38, p38 and GAPDH using LDRG extracts from db+ and db/db mice at 5, 8, 10, and 12 wk of age. Increased levels of pp38 were detected in db/db mice when compared to db+ mice at 5, 8 and 10 wk of age. At 12 wk of age, p38 phosphorylation returned to the control level. In addition, no change in expression levels of p38 was detected in LDRG of db/db mice and db+ mice. GAPDH served as the loading control. B: Densitometric analysis of immunoblots using LDRG of db+ and db/db mice at 5, 8, 10 and 12 wk of age during the development of mechanical allodynia. Significantly enhanced pp38 levels were detected in db/db mice at 5, 8 and 10 wk of age but not at 12 wk of age. N = 4, *p < 0.05.