Figure 5.

Evaluation of the effect of EndMT inhibition by SMAD3 knockdown on cell proliferation, apoptosis, and immune cell infiltration in a preclinical large animal AVF model at 30 days (Phase 2). Images in this figure are from the venous limb of the AVF, within 5–10 mm of the narrowest portion. (A) Assessment of cell proliferation with representative immunofluorescence staining for CD31 (green), Ki67 (red), and DAPI-stained nuclei (blue) with quantifications. (B) Assessment of apoptosis with representative immunofluorescence staining for TUNEL assay (red) and DAPI-stained nuclei (blue) with quantifications. (C) Assessment of immune cell infiltration with representative immunofluorescence staining for CD45 (red) and DAPI-stained nuclei (blue) with quantifications. (D) Assessment of immune cell infiltration with representative immunofluorescence staining for CD68 (red) and DAPI-stained nuclei (blue) with quantifications. All analyses were performed using Mann–Whitney test except for in C; CD45+ cell/total DAPI analysis was performed with unpaired Student’s t-test. All scale bars = 50 µm. ns, not significant. n = 8 pigs per group for all analyses.