Figure 7.

Effects of atorvastatin treatment on Nrf2 and NQO1 expression as well as ROS and GSH activities in the lung tissues of asthmatic mice. Mice were treated with atorvastatin or Dex and challenged with ovalbumin (nebulized 2.5% solution 30 min/day, 3 days/week for 6 weeks). The expression of (A) Nrf2 and (B) NQO1 protein was measured by western blot analysis. Representative western blots showing the protein expression levels of Nrf2 and NQO1 in the four groups of mice are shown in the upper panel. Lanes: a, control group; b, model group; c, treatment group; d, DEX group. Densitometrically quantified protein expression levels are shown in the lower panel. The activities of (C) ROS and (D) GSH in lung tissues were also measured. Values are expressed as the mean ± standard deviation of one experiment consisting of three replicates. The experiments were performed in triplicate. *P<0.05, **P<0.01 vs. control group; ^#P<0.05 vs. model group. NQO1, NADPH quinine oxidoreductase; Nrf2, nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2; ROS, reactive oxygen species; GSH glutathione; Dex, dexamethasone.