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. 2016 Jun 23;6:28495. doi: 10.1038/srep28495

Figure 5. Pioglitazone inhibits T cell activation in the estrus but not in the diestrus stage of the menstrual cycle in females.

Figure 5

(A) Menstrual cycle was monitored in six- to eight-week-old female C57BL/6 mice and splenocytes were isolated from the mice at estrus and diestrus stages. The cells were activated with anti-CD3 and anti-CD28 antibodies for 24 h in the presence of DMSO or pioglitazone. (B,C) CD69 and CD25 expression gated on CD4-positive cells were analyzed with flow cytometry and the % of CD69- and CD25-positive cells were represented. (D) IFN-γ and IL-2 cytokine production levels following TcR stimulation were analyzed by ELISA using cultured supernatant. (E) Total RNA was isolated from female splenocytes from diestrus and estrus stages and the expression level of PPARs was analyzed by real-time PCR and normalized to β-actin. The data shown represent means ± SEM (n = 5/group). *P < 0.05, ***P < 0.001 by a two-tailed, unpaired Student’s t-test.