Basal levels of autophagy in the hypothalamus of BACHD mice.

The expression levels of selected autophagy markers were analyzed by Western blot in hypothalamic tissue from BACHD mice at 2, 6 and 12 months of age and compared with gender- and age-matched controls (n = 3–6/group). The data showed a substantial maintenance of the autophagy flux, despite the presence of a metabolic phenotype in the BACHD mice already at early time points. The expression level of a marker for selective autophagy p62 showed a progressive accumulation in both BACHD and wt mice (Bonferroni post-hoc test: wt p = 0.003, BACHD p = 0.02). The data in the graphs are expressed as mean ± SEM, relative to the 2 months wt controls. The Western blots are representative of one sample for each group.