FIGURE 2.

Topical administration of mast cell inhibitor reduces mast cell frequencies and activation at the ocular surface following corneal transplantation. (A) Schematic of experimental design showing the time points of eye drop administration relative to corneal transplantation and tissue harvesting. (B) Representative flow cytometric dot plots (left), and bar chart of cumulative data (right), showing frequencies of c-Kit⁺FCεR1⁺ mast cells at the ocular surface in naïve mice, syngeneic graft recipients (Syn Tx), and vehicle-treated and mast cell inhibitor-treated allotransplant recipients (data shown are gated on CD45⁺ cells). (C) Quantitation of percentage increase in β-hexosaminidase levels at ocular surface of indicated groups compared to control (nontransplanted contralateral eyes). (D) Bar chart showing protein expression (MFI) of TNF-α by ocular surface mast cells in naïve, syngeneic, as well as vehicle-treated and mast cell inhibitor-treated allogeneic groups. Representative data from four independent experiments are shown and each experiment consisted of 4–6 animals. Data are represented as mean ± SEM (error bar). t test, *P < .05, **P < .01, ***P < .001, ns = not significant. In addition, means among multiple groups were compared using one-way ANOVA (P < .05)