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. 2016 Dec 30;12:263–277. doi: 10.2147/IJN.S123839

Figure 5.

Figure 5

Long-term intravenous exposure to c-SWNTs promotes deposition of collagens and ECM remodeling by upregulating both MMP-2 and TIMP-2.

Notes: Immunohistochemical examination of Col I and Col III, MMP-2, and TIMP-2 (A) in the rat lungs after intravenous injection at indicated periods (positive signal: brown; c-SWNT aggregations: red arrows; magnification: 100×). Mean optical density of Col I, Col III, MMP-2, and TIMP-2 (B) based on immunohistochemical assay. Data represent mean ± SEM. *P<0.05, **P<0.01, and ***P<0.001 vs control.

Abbreviations: c-SWNTs, carboxylated single-walled carbon nanotubes; ECM, extracellular matrix; MMP-2, matrix metalloproteinase-2; TIMP-2, tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase-2; Col I, type-I collagen; Col III, type-III collagen; SEM, standard error of the mean.