Figure 5. Validation of acute and chronic lung FGF2 knockdown by siRNA.
(A) FGF2 mRNA and protein levels in rat lung 12 hours and 120 hours after MCT injection. Rats were injected with FGF2-siRNA or the scrambled siRNA sequence either once, 3 days before MCT injection (12-hour group), or twice, 3 days before and 1 day after MCT injection (120-hour group). (B) FGF2 mRNA and protein levels in rat lungs 21 days after MCT injection. Rats were injected with FGF2-siRNA or the scrambled siRNA sequence (2 [2iv] or 4 [4iv] injections). FGF2 mRNA levels were assessed using real-time quantitative PCR and protein levels with FGF2 immunoblotting (the lanes were run on the same gel but were not contiguous). All values are mean ± SEM from at least 5 animals in each group. *P < 0.05; **P < 0.01; ***P < 0.001 vs. rats injected with saline instead of MCT or vs. rats treated with the scrambled siRNA sequence.