Fig. 3: BAT-derived Nrg4 deficiency accelerated endothelium injury and atherosclerosis.
Mice aged 6 weeks were fed a WD for 12 weeks (6 mice in each group). a, The vasodilatation reaction induced by Ach (n = 6). b, Representative images of TUNEL staining in sections of thoracic aortas (n = 6). Arrows indicate CD31/TUNEL colocalization. Scale bars, 100 μm. c, The percentage of apoptotic endothelial cells (n = 6). d, Representative electron microscopy images of endothelium. Scale bars, 5 μm. e, Representative images of en face atherosclerotic lesions. f, Quantitative analysis of e (n = 6). g, Representative images of the cross-sectional area of the aortic root (n = 6). Scale bars, 200 μm. h, Quantitative analysis of g. i, Representative immunohistochemical staining images of VSMCs (α-SMA), collagen (Masson), macrophages (anti-CD68) and T lymphocytes (anti-CD3) in aortic plaques. Scale bar, 20 μm. j, Quantitative analysis of I (n = 6). k, Representative H&E staining images of plaque. Dashed lines indicate the contour of the lipid core. Scale bars, 50 μm. l, The quantitative analysis of necrotic core and fibrous cap thickness. The necrotic core was presented as a percentage of lesion area and the fibrous cap thickness was measured at the midpoint and shoulder regions of each lesion and quantified as the ratio of cap thickness to lesion size (n = 6). m, The expressions of MMP2 and MMP9 in mice aortic tissue. n, Quantitative analysis of m (n = 6). Statistical significance was calculated using two-sided Student’s t-tests. The data are presented as the mean ± s.e.m. *P < 0.05; #P < 0.01.
