Fig. 2.

Inhibition of Lp-PLA2 by darapladib ameliorated Ang II infusion-induced collagen deposition and cardiac fibrosis. C57BL/6J mice received darapladib (50 mg·kg⁻¹·d⁻¹) or vehicle by gavage and were infused with saline or Ang II (1500 ng·kg⁻¹·min⁻¹) for 7 days. a Masson’s trichrome staining of myocardial fibrosis and quantification of fibrotic area (n = 5; scale bar = 100 μm). b Immunohistochemical staining of myofibroblasts with α-SMA and pro-fibrotic cytokine TGF-β. The quantifications are shown (n = 5; scale bar = 200 μm). c Western blot analysis of collagen I and collagen III protein levels in hearts, and the quantification of protein bands (n = 6). d RT-PCR analysis of Ctgf, Col1a1, and Col3a1 mRNA expression levels in heart tissues (n = 5). Ctgf connective tissue growth factor, Col1a1 collagen type I alpha 1, Col3a1 collagen type III alpha 1. Data are presented as the mean ± standard deviation, and n represents the number of animals. **P < 0.01, ***P < 0.001.