Fig. 7: The COMP–prohibitin 2 interaction maintains mitochondrial homeostasis and the VSMC contractile phenotype.

a VSMCs were transfected with vector or the prohibitin 2-DN plasmid. Quantification of the OCRs. The data was analyzed using paired two-tailed Student’s t test and presented as the means ± SD of five independent experiments. *P < 0.05. b Intracellular ATP production of rat VSMCs transfected with vector or the prohibitin 2-DN plasmid. The data were analyzed using unpaired two-tailed Student’s t test and presented as the means ± SD of three independent experiments. *P < 0.05. c JC-1 staining of rat VSMCs transfected with vector or the prohibitin 2-DN plasmid. Scale bar = 50 μm. Quantification was calculated as a quotient of the fluorescence intensities of the red and green fluorescent signals. The data were analyzed using paired two-tailed Student’s t test and presented as the means ± SD of three independent experiments. *P < 0.05. d Western blot analysis and quantification of the protein levels of α-actin, calponin and SM22 in cell lysates from vector or prohibitin 2-DN plasmid-transfected VSMCs. The data were analyzed using paired two-tailed Student’s t-test and presented as the means ± SD of three independent experiments. *P < 0.05. e Upper: Representative cross sections of hematoxylin & eosin-stained sham operated and ballooned-injured carotid arteries infected with Ad-GFP or Ad-prohibitin 2-DN at day 14, scale bar = 100 µm. Lower: Quantitative analysis of intima area, ratio of intima to media, circumference of external elastic lamina (EEL) and media area in histological sections from ballooned-injured carotid arteries infected with Ad-GFP or Ad-prohibitin 2-DN at day 14. The data were analyzed using unpaired two-tailed Student’s t test and presented as the means ± SD. N = 6–8 in each group. *P < 0.05. ns no significance