Figure 6
Spontaneous airway remodeling occurs in tumor necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL)-deficient mice. Wild-type (WT) or TRAIL-deficient (Tnfsf10−/−) mice were exposed to cigarette smoke or normal air for eight weeks. (a) Small airway epithelial thickness in terms of epithelial cell area (μm2) per basement membrane (BM) perimeter (μm) was determined in periodic acid-Schiff (PAS)-stained whole-lung sections. (b) The number of epithelial cells in PAS-stained lung sections was assessed by enumerating the number of nuclei per 100 μm of BM perimeter. (c) Area of collagen deposition (μm2) per BM perimeter (μm) was determined in Masson’s Trichrome-stained lung sections. Data (n=5–6) presented as means±s.e.m. are representative of two independent experiments. *P<0.05; ****P<0.0001 compared with normal air-exposed WT or Tnfsf10−/− controls. φφP<0.01; φφφP<0.001; φφφφP<0.0001 compared with normal air-exposed WT controls.
