The present study observed sciatic nerve and gastrocnemius muscle changes in denervated rats using morphology methods, and assessed expression of perlecan, an extracellular matrix component, which is located at the skeletal muscle cell surface as acetylcholine esterase, as well as synaptophysin, a synaptic marker. Results showed degeneration and inflammation following transection of the sciatic nerve. In addition, the sciatic nerve-dominated skeletal muscle degenerated with mild inflammation, indicating that skeletal muscle atrophy primarily contributed to denervation-induced nutritional disturbances. With prolonged injury time (1-4 weeks post-injury), perlecan expression gradually decreased and reached the lowest level at 4 weeks, but synaptophysin expression remained unchanged after denervation. Results suggested that perlecan expression was more sensitive to denervation and reflected regional extracellular matrix changes following denervation.