Figure 3.

LncRNA H19 aggravates atherosclerosis in apoE^−/− mice. (A) Flow chart demonstrating the experimental protocol utilized in the in vivo experiments. (B,C) RT-PCR analysis of lncRNA H19 expression in the blood and aorta of atherosclerotic lesions of AAV-sh-NC-, AAV-sh-H19-, AAV-OE-NC-, and AAV-OE-H19-treated apoE^−/− mice. (D) Plaques in the aortic arch of apoE^−/− mice observed using a stereoscopic microscope. (E) Parts of the aortic root was stained with Mason, oil red O, or HE. The lesion area and proportion were computed utilizing the Image J software (n = 6). Scale bar = 100 μm. (F) The whole aorta was stained with oil red O, and the area of atherosclerotic lesion was computed by analyzing oil red O absorbance after isopropanol extraction (n = 6). Data are represented as mean ± SD of 3 separate experiments. ^*P < 0.05, ^**P < 0.01, and ^***P < 0.001 vs. the control cohort.