Fig. 5.
CTHRC1 monoclonal antibody attenuates promotive effects of CTHRC1 on liver fibrosis.
A and B. Sirius red and Masson's trichrome staining in the livers of WT, WT C57 mice treated with CCl4 (A) or TAA (B) and intraperitoneally injected with monoclonal antibody (mAb) of CTHRC1 (n = 10) or IgG (n = 10). Each mouse was intraperitoneally injected with CTHRC1 mAb at a dose of 5 μg/g body weight. Scale bars, 100 μm. Quantification of sirius red and Masson's trichrome staining was shown right.
C. The serum levels of ALT and AST in WT C57 mice treated with CCl4 or TAA and intraperitoneally injected with mAb of CTHRC1 (n = 10) or IgG (n = 10).
D. The hepatic levels of Acta2, Col1a1, Timp1 and Mmp9 mRNA in WT C57 mice treated with CCl4 or TAA and intraperitoneally injected with CTHRC1 mAb (n = 10) or IgG (n = 10) were determined by qPCR.
E. Immunohistochemical staining of α-SMA and desmin in CCl4 (E, upper photos) and TAA (E, lower photos) induced liver fibrosis tissues of WT mice treated with CTHRC1 blocking antibody or IgG control, using serial sections. Scale bars, 100 μm. Quantification of immunostaining was shown below.
F. Western blotting analysis of phosphorylation of Smad2, Smad3 and total Smad4 in five liver tissues of WT mice treated with CTHRC1 mAb or IgG. GAPDH was detected as the loading control. The densitometry of p-Smad2/Smad2 was shown below. **P < .01. (For interpretation of the references to colour in this figure legend, the reader is referred to the web version of this article.)