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. 2011 Sep;90(3):493–507. doi: 10.1189/jlb.0411197

Figure 8. Levels of TGF-β, numbers of pulmonary Tregs, and Ft burden are interrelated features of early tularemia pathogenesis.

Figure 8.

(A) Four groups of C57BL/6 mice were i.n.-infected with 1 × 103 CFU of BHI-grown Ft LVS and killed at Days 1, 3, 5, and 7 PI. One group of sham-inoculated mice served as a control. Bacterial burden was determined by colony plating and presented as log10 CFU. (B–D) Points represent individual animals, and lines are linear regression fits to data for each day. (B) The bacterial burden is positively correlated with TGF-β levels on Days 1 [r2=0.67; P=0.013; log(CFUs)=3.79+137(10−6)×TGF-β] and 3 [r2=0.77; P<0.01; log(CFUs)=6.37+82(10−6)×TGF-β]. (C) The bacterial burden is positively correlated with numbers of Tregs on Days 1 [r2=0.65; P=0.02; log(CFUs)=4.10+314(10−6)×Tregs] and 3 [r2=0.71; P<0.01; log(CFUs)=6.84+58(10−6)×Tregs]. (D) Numbers of Tregs are positively correlated with TGF-β levels at Days 0 (r2=0.91; P<0.001; Tregs=–231+0.254×TGF-β), 1 (r2=0.71; P<0.01; Tregs=–524+0.362×TGF-β), and 3 (r2=0.75; P<0.01; Tregs=–5982+1.17×TGF-β).