Figure 2: IL-17A promotes bone regeneration after injury by enhancing osteoblast function.

(a) Micro-CT images of the drill holes in the wild-type and Il17a^−/− mice after injury. Scale bar, 500 μm. (b) Quantification of bone formation in the drill holes (n=4−8 per time point per genotype). (c) Visualization of the bone mineral density of the newly formed bone in the drill holes. Images were constructed by colouring the micro-CT images according to the CT values. The lines denote the original shapes of the drill holes. Scale bar, 500 μm. (d) Bone mineral content in the drill holes (n=4−8 per time point per genotype). (e) Histological images of the femur of the wild-type and Il17a^−/− mice stained with HE staining. The lines indicate the edge of the drill hole. Scale bar, 500 μm. (f) Bone surface lined with cuboidal osteoblasts (dotted lines) on the newly formed bone. Scale bar, 50 μm. (g) Cuboidal osteoblast surface per bone surface. The bone surface covered with bone-forming osteoblasts was quantified by bone histomorphometric analysis (n=3 per time point per genotype, 6 representative sections per each femur). Statistical analysis was carried out using Student’s t test for each time point in Fig. 2. Error bars denote the mean±s.e.m. *P<0.05; NS, not significant.