Comparison of cell death in hippocampal slice cultures after exposure to equipotent doses (1 or 2 minimum alveolar concentration [MAC]) of xenon, isoflurane, or sevoflurane. Average cell death of cell body regions assessed by SYTOX® (Life Technologies, Eugene, OR) and analyzed using an ANOVA with a post hoc Tukey test. (A) Cell death after exposure to 1 MAC, P = <0.0001. (B) Cell death after exposure to 2 MAC, P = <0.0001. To combine data from multiple experiments, fluorescent values of the treatment groups were normalized to their respective control groups. Number of asterisks indicates the degree of significance as follows: * P = 0.01–0.05, *** P < 0.001. All data bars represent the mean and SEM of SYTOX® or fluorojade fluorescence in average of the hippocampal cell body regions: CA1, CA3, and dentate. Numbers above the SEM bars indicate the number of tissue slices in each treatment group.