Fig. 2: Histopathological examination of aorta and liver tissues in different experimental groups.

A Oil Red O staining of the aorta showed significant lipids accumulation in HFD-fed mice compared to control mice. Although the low dose of Pls did not show any significant effects, the lipids positive area in the PLH and AG groups was markedly reduced compared to that in the M group; B Representative photomicrographs of oil red O staining cross sections of the aortic root. The lipids accumulation in AS model group was most notable; C Representative photomicrographs of H&E staining cross sections of the aortic root; D Representative photomicrographs of Masson staining cross sections of the aortic root. Both (C) and (D) exhibited the sparser cell arrangement and increased collagen content in the M group, whereas Pls- or ATV-treatment effectively improved cell arrangement and mitigated collagen accumulation; E Representative photomicrographs of H&E staining of the liver. Compared to M group, the livers from PLH and ATV groups displayed the significantly reduced degree of steatosis (evidenced by fewer lipid droplet vacuoles), fibrosis, and inflammatory infiltration; F Representative photomicrographs of oil red O staining of the liver tissues. The obvious reduction in lipid droplets was observed in PLH and ATV groups when compared to M group; G Representative photomicrographs of H&E staining of the epididymal adipose tissues. Pls intervention effectively suppressed the swelling and disordered arrangement of epididymal adipose tissue in HFD-induced AS model mice; H Quantification of Oil Red O staining based on the percentage of the positive area relative to the complete artery area (n = 3 for each group); I Quantification of Oil Red O staining based on plaque size (n = 3 for each group); J Quantification of Oil Red O staining based on the liver positive area (n = 3 for each group). Data were presented as mean ± SD, and different lowercase letters on the data indicate significant differences (p < 0.05).