Fig. 2

Changes in angiogenesis in the limbal blood vessels from antibiotic-treated (Abx-treated) and control mice. a Heatmap of genes involved in angiogenesis (the top 30 differentially expressed genes) (Supplementary Table 3) in corneal tissues of Abx-treated and control mice at postnatal day 28 (P28) (n = 3 independent experiments, six mice per experiment in each group). b The difference in the expression of the Vegfa, Hif1a, Pdcd10, and Nus1 genes that participate in angiogenesis in corneal tissues between Abx-treated mice and control mice at P7, P14, P21, and P28 with qPCR analysis (n = 3 independent experiments, six mice per experiment in each group). c Comparison of the area of the limbal blood vessels in Abx-treated and control mice. The four upper images show the staining of the limbal blood vessels with anti-CD31 antibody in the two groups of mice (scale bars: the images of whole cornea, 500 μm, the partial enlarged views of limbal blood vessels, 200 μm). The lower graph shows the dynamic changes in the area of the limbal blood vessels in the two groups of mice at P7, P14, P21, and P28 (n = 6 mice at each time point in each group). The data are presented as mean ± SD. *P < 0.05, **P < 0.01, and ***P < 0.001