Figure 3.

L. mucosae A1 protected Western diet-fed ApoE^-/- mice from atherosclerosis. (A) Representative photomicrographs of Oil Red O-stained sections of aortic sinus under 40× magnification and area ratio of atherosclerotic plaque. The scale bar is 500 μm. (B) The level of lipopolysaccharide-binding protein (LBP) in serum. (C) The level of trimethylamine (TMA) and trimethylamine-N-oxide (TMAO) in serum collected at the 4th, 8th and 13th week. All the data are shown as means ± s.e.m. NC: n = 7, WD: n =8, WD + LM: n =9. Values of each group were analyzed by one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) followed by Tukey’s post hoc test. * p < 0.05, ** p < 0.01, *** p < 0.001.