Figure 7.

TRAP-positive macrophages produce more proteases than myeloid cells in mouse CaPO₄ (A,D), mouse AngII (B,E), and human (C,F) aneurysms. Aneurysmal tissues from CaPO₄-treated mice (n = 4), AngII-treated mice (n = 6), and human AAA (n = 4) were enzymatically digested and processed to obtain single-cell suspensions for flow cytometric analysis, as described in the Methods section. The expression of cathepsin K (A–C) and MMP-9 (D–F) is compared between myeloid cells (CD11b⁺, TRAP⁻) and TPMs (CD11b⁺, TRAP⁺). Data are expressed as mean ± SEM. * p < 0.05, ** p < 0.01, *** p < 0.001. TPM, TRAP-positive macrophage. AAA, abdominal aortic aneurysm.