Figure 4.
The impact of Aronia melanocarpa L. berry extract (AE) on the expression of collagen type I and collagen type III at the protein level in the livers of rats exposed to cadmium (Cd) for 17 (a) and 24 (b) months. The animals were treated with Cd at the concentrations of 0, 1, and 5 mg Cd/kg in their diets and/or 0.1% aqueous AE (+) or not (−). Representative gels of Western blotting are presented. Data are shown as mean ± SE for eight rats, except for seven animals in the AE, Cd1, and Cd5 groups after 24 months. Statistically significant differences (Kruskal–Wallis post hoc test): * p < 0.05 and ** p < 0.01 vs. control group; † p < 0.05 and †† p < 0.01 vs. appropriate Cd group; ‡ p < 0.05 and ‡‡ p < 0.01 vs. AE group; # p < 0.05 and ## p < 0.01 vs. appropriate group maintained on the 1 mg Cd/kg diet (Cd1 group or Cd1 + AE group). Numerical values in bars express the percentage changes or factors of changes in comparison to the control group (↑, increase; ↓, decrease) or the appropriate group exposed to Cd alone (↗, increase; ↙, decrease)