Figure 2. Depletion of maternal CD11b⁺ myeloid cells on 16 dpc induces preterm birth and adverse neonatal outcomes.

(A) Cd11b^DTR/DTR or Cd11b^WT/WT dams were administered diphtheria toxin (DT, 25 ng/g, i.p.) or PBS on 16 dpc. Birth and neonatal outcomes were recorded (all n = 7–8 dams per group). Parameters shown are (B) rate of preterm birth (delivery within 48 hours of intervention, e.g., ≤18 dpc), analyzed by Fisher’s exact test; (C) gestational length presented as box plots where midlines indicate medians, boxes indicate IQR, and whiskers indicate minimum/maximum range, analyzed by Kruskal-Wallis test followed by Mann-Whitney U test; and (D) Kaplan-Meier survival curves showing the percentage survival per litter of neonates at 1, 8, and 21 days postpartum, analyzed by Mantel-Cox tests. (E–G) Violin plots showing the mean weight per litter of surviving pups at 1, 8, and 21 days postpartum. Symbols are median values from individual dams. Data were analyzed by 1-way ANOVA and post hoc 2-tailed t test. P values were considered significant when P was less than 0.05.