Fig. 4
Alteration of corneal development in Abx-treated mice after fecal transplant. a Evaluation of the difference in the proliferation capacity among control mice (sterile water treatment), antibiotic-treated (Abx-treated) mice, and Abx-treated mice with fecal transplants at postnatal day 7 (P7), P14, P21, and P28. The three left images show the DAPI staining of corneas from the three groups of mice (scale bars, 25 μm), and the right graph shows the dynamic changes of dividing basal epithelial cells in the three groups of mice after birth (n = 6 mice at each time point). b Evaluation of the difference in the corneal area among control mice, Abx-treated mice, and Abx-treated mice with fecal transplants. The three left images show the spatial range of the cornea as distinguished by the black retinal pigment epithelium (RPE) in the three groups of mice (scale bars, 500 μm). The right graph shows the dynamic changes in corneal area in the three groups of mice after birth (n = 6 mice at each time point). c Evaluation of the difference in corneal thickness among control mice, Abx-treated mice, and Abx-treated mice with fecal transplants. The three left images show the plastic embedding and toluidine blue staining of eye sections in the three groups of mice (scale bars, 20 μm), and the right graph shows the dynamic changes of corneal thickness in the three groups of mice (n = 6 mice at each time point in each group). d The difference in angiogenesis in the limbal blood vessels and neurogenesis in the corneal nerve fibers among control mice, Abx-treated mice, and Abx-treated mice with fecal transplants. The left graph shows the dynamic changes in the area of the limbal blood vessels in the three groups of mice (n = 6 mice at each time point in each group). The middle and right graphs show the dynamic changes in the total length and density of the corneal nerve fibers in the three groups of mice (n = 6 mice at each time point in each group). The data are presented as mean ± SD. *Abx-treated mice with fecal transplants vs Abx-treated mice, †Abx-treated mice with fecal transplants vs control mice, *,†P < 0.05, **P < 0.01 and ***,†††P < 0.001
