FIGURE 7.

Effects of TSG-6 deficiency on formation of HA-HC in asthmatic lungs of mice. Mice were immunized with alum alone and challenged with OVA aerosol (PBS/OVA) or immunized with OVA/alum and challenged with OVA aerosol (OVA/OVA), as in Fig. 2. Minced lung tissue was treated with Streptomyces hyaluronidase (Hyase; +) or left untreated (−) to release HCs from HA-HC. The supernatants of this extraction were analyzed by Western blotting and probed with antibodies against IαI. HCs (green) were released by hyaluronidase in the lungs of OVA/OVA WT mice (75 kDa; arrow) but not in the lungs of PBS/OVA-treated WT mice. In contrast, no HCs were released by hyaluronidase in the minced lung tissue of lungs derived from TSG-6^−/− mice after either OVA/alum or PBS/OVA treatment. The bands were identified as 240-kDa IαI, 120-kDa pre-α-inhibitor, and 75-kDa HCs. Molecular mass standards are shown in red on the left in kilodaltons. Identical results were obtained from three replicates (data not shown).