Figure 7.

Opuntiol prevents MMP, collagen I, and collagen III expression in UVA (100 J/cm²)-irradiated mouse skin. (a) Effect of opuntiol (50 mg/kg b.wt.) on UVA-linked expression of MMP-9, MMP-2, and MMP-1 expression was analyzed by immunohistochemistry. Twenty-four hours following the last UVA irradiation, the mouse dorsal skin was collected for immunohistochemistry. Representative photomicrographs (20x) illustrate MMP-2 and MMP-9 expression. (b) Densitometry analysis of MMP-9, MMP-2, and MMP-1 expression in UVA radiation and/or opuntiol-treated mouse skin. The histogram data was measured by Magnus Pro software, and the data were presented as a percentage of total tissue area. (c) Effect of opuntiol on UVA-linked collagen I and collagen III expression in mouse skin. The content of collagen I and collagen III was determined using commercial kits. The data represent means ± SD from three independent experiments, and values not sharing a common marking (∗ and #) differ significantly at P < 0.05 (DMRT).