Figure 2. Single injection of AAV-mPCSK9 mutant (D377Y) induces atherosclerotic lesion formation in high-fat, high-cholesterol fed C57BL/6J mice.
A) H&E staining of aortic sinus and aortic arch of AAV-mPCSK9- or saline-injected C57BL/6J mice and Ldlr−/− mice that consumed a high-fat, high-cholesterol diet for 15 or 20 weeks. Bar: 200µm. B) Representative photomicrographs of aortic sinus (top) and aortic arch (bottom) atherosclerotic plaques after Oil Red O staining. Bar: 100µm C) Quantification of aortic sinus lesion area. D) Quantification of aortic arch (lesser curvature) lesion area. E) Quantification of valve leaflet area. *p < 0.05 by one-way ANOVA. n.s., not significant. Data presented as mean±SD. Each dot depicts one mouse. n=3–8 for all panels.