Experiment 1

The impact of BMSCs administration on brain injury and neuroinflammation were assessed at 24 and 72 h after SAH. Neurological evaluation, brain water content (BWC), BBB permeability, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) staining were conducted at 24 and 72 h post-SAH. Neuronal degeneration and activated microglia-mediated neuroinflammation were separately examined by Fluoro-Jade C (FJC) staining, immunofluorescence (IF) staining, and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). A total of 167 rats were randomly assigned into 5 groups: Sham 24 h group (n = 24), SAH 24 h + phosphate buffer solution (PBS) group (n = 31), SAH 24 h + BMSCs group (n = 29), Sham 72 h group (n = 24), SAH 72 h + PBS group (n = 30), and SAH 72 h + BMSCs group (n = 29).