Fig. 1

a Adult male and female Sprague–Dawley rats were administered DFP followed one min later by atropine sulfate (AS) and 2-pralidoxime (2-PAM). Control animals were administered vehicle (Veh) in place of DFP. At 40 and 50 min post-DFP intoxication, animals received midazolam (MDZ). Behavioral seizures were monitored over the first 4 h post-intoxication. At 1, 3, 7, 14, and 28 d post exposure (DPE), animals were either subjected to translocator protein (TSPO) positron emission tomography (PET) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) or euthanized and brains harvested for histological analyses. b Modified Racine scale used to evaluate behavioral seizures. Only those animals with an average seizure score of ≥ 2.5 prior to MDZ intervention were included for the remainder of the study (5/42 males and 5/42 females were excluded). c, d Behavioral seizure scores in males (c) and females (d) after administration of DFP or Veh. Vertical dotted lines indicate the timing of MDZ treatment. Data are presented as mean ± SD (n = 20–21 Veh and 37 DFP animals per sex)