Figure 1.

Aldehyde dehydrogenase 2 (Aldh2) deficiency promotes the proliferation of bone marrow-derived mast cells (BMMCs). (A) Mean fluorescence intensity (MFI) of cell surface FcεRI (left) and Kit (right) in BMMCs from Aldh2^+/+ and Aldh2^−/− mice cultures grown for 5 weeks and analyzed concurrently. (B) Numbers of viable BMMCs from Aldh2^+/+ and Aldh2^−/− mice at the indicated times in culture. Cells were stained with trypan blue and counted using a hemocytometer. (C) Increase in numbers of Aldh2^+/+ and Aldh2^−/− mature mast cells (5 weeks old), plated at the same density, for 9 days in full media. (D) Proliferation of 5-week-old Aldh2^+/+ and Aldh2^−/− mast cells measured by [³H]-thymidine incorporation. Cells were plated at the same density in media with or without the indicated concentrations of stem cell factor (SCF) for 24 h. Data are the mean ± SEM of five independent cultures. ** p < 0.01; n.s., not significant.