Figure 2.

TUDCA treatment prevented hepatic activation of the NLRP3 inflammasome in ob/ob mice challenged with LPS. (a) Analysis of whole-liver samples from PBS-, TUDCA-, LPS- and [TUDCA+LPS]-treated mice. Immunoblot analysis of active caspase-11, active caspase-1 and NLRP3 protein levels are shown (n=4–6). (b) Real-time quantitative PCR analysis was performed to compare relative hepatic levels of Nlrp3 and IL-18 mRNAs. (c) Plasma cytokine levels were quantified for IL-1β, TNFα and IFNγ (n=7–9). Statistical significance from controls is denoted by *^,#P≤0.05, **^,##P≤0.01, ***^,###P≤0.001