Fig. 5. Sp7-Cre; Klf4^fx/+ mice showed defective osteoblast formation in vivo and in vitro.

A Immunohistochemistry (IHC) staining showed the expression of KLF4, Ki67, SP7, and OPN were decreased in 8-week-old Sp7-Cre; Klf4^fx/+ (KLF4-Het) mouse femurs. n = 3. B mBMSCs from Klf4^fx/fx (KLF4-WT) and KLF4-Het mice were applied to Alizarin Red staining on day 14. n = 3. C Western blot analysis of SP7 and OPN protein expression levels in mBMSCs. β-Actin was used as an internal control. n = 3. D–G qRT-PCR analysis of Sp7 (D), Opn (E), Runx2 (F), and Bglap (G) mRNA expression levels in mBMSCs. Gapdh was used as an internal control. n = 3, ***P < 0.001, ****P < 0.0001.