Figure 1. A, Plasma milk fat globule epidermal growth factor 8 (MFG-E8) levels in healthy controls and patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). B, Plasma MFG-E8 levels in COPD patients differing in the severity of their disease. Global Initiative For Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD) criteria: GOLD I (mild); GOLD II (moderate); GOLD III (severe); GOLD IV (very severe). C, Plasma MFG-E8 levels among never, current, and ex-smokers. A: *P<0.05 vscontrol; B: *P<0.05 vs GOLD IV; C: #P<0.05 vs never smoker (Mann-Whitney U-test was used to compare two groups and Kruskal-Wallis H test was used to compare more than two groups).
