FIG. 2.
cGKI is expression in pancreatic islets. A: The cGKI protein was present in islet lysates of control (CTR, genotype: cGKI+/+ or cGKI+/L−) islets but not detectable in islet homogenates from cGKI-KO (KO, genotype: cGKIL−/L−), αRM (genotype: SM22α+/Iα; cGKIL−/L−) and βRM (genotype: SM22β+/Iβ; cGKIL−/L−) mice. A cGKI common antibody (cGKIcom) (30) was used to identify the respective protein. β-actin was used as loading control and somatostatin (sst) as a marker of pancreatic islets. B: Western blot analysis demonstrating expression of the cGKI protein in the stomach of control (ctr), αRM, and βRM mice, but no expression in cGKI-KO (KO) mice. β-actin was used as loading control. C: Immunohistochemical stainings of cGKI protein showing expression in control islets (dotted line) and smooth muscle cells (SMCs) of small blood vessels (arrows). Pancreatic sections from αRM and βRM animals show cGKI expression in the exocrine pancreas that was restricted to the vasculature (arrows), whereas the cGKI-KO pancreatic sections completely lacked the cGKI protein in both islets and SMCs. For better illustration, a white dotted line was added to indicate the islet's perimeter. Scale bar, 20 μm. (A high-quality color representation of this figure is available in the online issue.)