Fig 1.
Effects of ALA on the body weight of rats (g).
DPN, diabetic peripheral neuropathy; ALA, α-lipoic acid (60 mg/kg/day). The values are presented as the means ± standard deviations; n = 15 rats in each group.
Fig 2.
Effects of ALA on the fasting blood glucose levels (mmol/L) of rats.
The values are presented as the means ± standard deviations; n = 15 rats in each group. ## P < 0.01 vs. the control group. One-way ANOVA with Tukey’s multiple comparisons test.
Fig 3.
Effect of ALA on the PWT (g) of rats.
The values are presented as the means ± standard deviations; n = 15 rats in each group. ## P < 0.01 vs. the control group; ** P < 0.01 vs. the DPN group. One-way ANOVA with Tukey’s multiple comparisons test.
Fig 4.
Effect of ALA on the MNCV (m/s) of rats.
The values are presented as the means ± standard deviations; n = 15 rats in each group. ## P < 0.01 vs. the control group; ** P < 0.01 vs. the DPN group. One-way ANOVA with Tukey’s multiple comparisons test.
Fig 5.
Effect of ALA on the morphology of the rat sciatic nerve (μm) (n = 5).
a HE staining was performed to observe the morphological changes in the sciatic nerve (scale bar: 50 μm). b Bar plot (means ± SDs) showing changes in the axons of the sciatic nerve. ## P < 0.01 vs. the control group; *P < 0.05 vs. the DPN group. One-way ANOVA with Tukey’s multiple comparisons test was used.
Fig 6.
The expression of KIF5A in the sciatic nerve was analyzed by immunofluorescence staining and Western blotting (n = 5).
a Analysis of KIF5A expression by immunofluorescence staining (scale bar: 50 μm). b Bar plot (means ± SDs) of KIF5A expression detected using immunofluorescence staining. c KIF5A expression was determined by Western blotting. d Bar plot (means ± SDs) of KIF5A expression analyzed using Western blotting. ## P < 0.01 vs. the control group; ** P < 0.01, *P < 0.05 vs. the DPN group. One-way ANOVA with Tukey’s multiple comparisons test was used.
Fig 7.
The expression of DYNC1I2 in the sciatic nerve was analyzed by immunofluorescence staining and Western blotting (n = 5).
a Analysis of DYNC1I2 expression by immunofluorescence staining (scale bar: 50 μm). b Bar plot (means ± SDs) of DYNC1I2 expression detected using immunofluorescence staining. c DYNC1I2 expression determined by Western blotting. d Bar plot (means ± SDs) of DYNC1I2 expression detected by Western blotting. ## P < 0.01 vs. the control group; **P < 0.01, * P < 0.05 vs. the DPN group. One-way ANOVA with Tukey’s multiple comparisons test was used.
Fig 8.
The level of p-AMPK in the dorsal root ganglia was analyzed by immunofluorescence staining and Western blotting (n = 5).
a Analysis of p-AMPK levels by immunofluorescence staining (scale bar: 50 μm). b Bar plot (means ± SDs) of p-AMPK levels detected using immunofluorescence staining. c p-AMPK and AMPK levels were determined by Western blotting. d Bar plot (means ± SDs) of p-AMPK/AMPK levels detected by Western blotting. ##P < 0.01 vs. the control group; *P < 0.05 vs. the DPN group. One-way ANOVA with Tukey’s multiple comparisons test was used.
Fig 9.
The level of p-CREB in the dorsal root ganglia was analyzed by immunofluorescence staining and Western blotting (n = 5).
a Analysis of p-CREB levels by immunofluorescence staining (scale bar: 50 μm). b Bar plot (means ± SDs) of p-CREB levels detected using immunofluorescence staining. c Levels of p-CREB and CREB determined by Western blotting. d Bar plot (means ± SDs) of p-CREB/CREB levels detected by Western blotting. ##P < 0.01, #P < 0.05 vs. the control group; ** P < 0.01 vs. the DPN group. One-way ANOVA with Tukey’s multiple comparisons test was used.
Fig 10.
Effect of ALA on changes in neuronal axon length in NSC34 cells.
a Analysis of neuronal axon length by immunofluorescence staining (scale bar: 50 μm). b Bar plot (means ± SDs) of the changes in neuronal axon length. ## P < 0.01 vs. the control group; ** P < 0.01 vs. the DPN group. One-way ANOVA with Tukey’s multiple comparisons test was used.
Fig 11.
Analysis of KIF5A expression by immunofluorescence staining and Western blotting (n = 5).
a Analysis of KIF5A expression by immunofluorescence staining (scale bar: 50 μm). b Bar plot (means ± SDs) of KIF5A expression detected using immunofluorescence staining. c KIF5A expression was determined by Western blotting. d Bar plot (means ± SDs) of KIF5A expression detected using Western blotting. ## P < 0.01 vs. the control group; **P < 0.01 vs. the DPN group. One-way ANOVA with Tukey’s multiple comparisons test was used.
Fig 12.
Analysis of DYNC1I2 expression by immunofluorescence staining and Western blotting (n = 5).
a Analysis of DYNC1I2 expression by immunofluorescence staining (scale bar: 50 μm). b Bar plot (means ± SDs) of DYNC1I2 expression detected using immunofluorescence staining. c The expression of DYNC1I2 determined by Western blotting. d Bar plot (means ± SDs) of DYNC1I2 expression detected using Western blotting. ##P < 0.01 vs. the control group; **P < 0.01 vs. the DPN group. One-way ANOVA with Tukey’s multiple comparisons test was used.
Fig 13.
Analysis of p-AMPK levels by immunofluorescence staining and Western blotting (n = 5).
a Analysis of p-AMPK levels by immunofluorescence staining (scale bar: 50 μm). b Bar plot (means ± SDs) of p-AMPK levels detected using immunofluorescence staining. c p-AMPK and AMPK levels were determined by Western blotting. d Bar plot (means ± SDs) of p-AMPK/AMPK levels detected using Western blotting. ##P < 0.01 vs. the control group; **P < 0.01, *P < 0.05 vs. the DPN group. One-way ANOVA with Tukey’s multiple comparisons test was used.
Fig 14.
Analysis of p-CREB levels by immunofluorescence staining and Western blotting (n = 5).
a Analysis of p-CREB levels by immunofluorescence staining (scale bar: 50 μm). b Bar plot (means ± SDs) of p-CREB levels detected using immunofluorescence staining. c Levels of p-CREB and CREB determined by Western blotting. c Bar plot (means ± SDs) of p-CREB/CREB levels detected using Western blotting. ##P < 0.01 vs. the control group; **P < 0.01, *P < 0.05 vs. the DPN group. One-way ANOVA with Tukey’s multiple comparisons test was used.