Figure 1. The effects of curcumin treatment on MRL/lpr mice. (A) Image of spleens and spleen/body weight ratios (mg/g) from the curcumin treatment (Cur) and control (Vehicle) groups. (B) Image of perirenal lymph nodes and the ratios of perirenal lymph nodes to body weight in the treatment and control groups. (C) Flow cytometric analysis of Treg cells in the PBMCs, lymph nodes and spleens of MRL/lpr mice treated with or without curcumin. (D) Serum IL6 and IFNγ levels measured by ELISA in the curcumin treatment and vehicle groups. (E) The serum level of anti-dsDNA antibody in curcumin and vehicle groups. The data are presented as the mean±SEM (n=6). ns, p˃0.05. *P<0.05, **p<0.01, ***p<0.001, ****p<0.0001. ds, double-stranded; IFN, interferon; IL, interleukin; PBMC, peripheral blood mononuclear cell.