Figure 6.

MSC-mediated protection of lungs from bleomycin is dependent of HGF production. Lungs were harvested on D28 of the bleomycin study for histological assessment. (A): Representative images of H&E (upper panel) and trichrome (lower panel) stained lung sections (100 ×) show collagen deposition and alveolar damage. Scale bar = 200 μm. (B): Fibrotic score was significantly reduced when MSCs were administered on D0; however, this effect was lost when HGF expression was knocked down in MSCs. n = 5. ∗∗∗, p < .001. Abbreviations: D, day; H&E, hematoxylin and eosin; HGF, hepatocyte growth factor; MSC, mesenchymal stromal cell; Non Sil Ctrl, nonsilencing control; PBS, phosphate-buffered saline; shHGF, shRNA HGF knockdown.