Figure 3.

MAPK phosphatase-1 (MKP-1) deficiency in hematopoietic-derived cells exacerbates the development of imiquimod (IMQ)-induced psoriasiform inflammation. Bone marrow (BM) cells of wild-type (WT) and MKP-1^−/− mice were transplanted into X-ray-irradiated WT mice to generate the WT → WT and MKP-1^−/− → WT chimeras. (A) Two months after the generation of BM chimeras, blood cells were analyzed by flow cytometry. (B–F) The chimeras were treated with IMQ for five consecutive days. n = 4–6 mice per group. Changes in ear thickness (B), representative images of hematoxylin and eosin staining of skin section (scale bars: 50 µm) (C), the relative expression of inflammatory-related genes in skin tissue (D), the percentages of IL-17⁺ γδ T cells and IFN-γ⁺ γδ T cells in the draining lymph nodes (DLNs) (E), and the percentages of IL-17⁺CD4⁺ T cells, IFN-γ⁺CD4⁺ T cells, and Foxp3⁺CD4⁺ T cells in the DLNs (F) were analyzed. Data are presented as mean ± SEM. Data are representative of two independent experiments.