Fig. 6

The effects of gut microbiota on the distribution of macrophages in the mouse cornea after birth. a Dynamic changes in the proportion of macrophages within corneal cells in antibiotic-treated (Abx-treated) and control mice at postnatal day 7 (P7), P14, P21, and P28 (n = 3 independent experiments, ten mice per experiment in each group). b Changes in the distribution of macrophages within the cornea in Abx-treated mice after fecal transplants (n = 3 independent experiments, ten mice per experiment in each group). c Investigation of the expression of Tgf-β, Il-34, and Csf-1 in corneal tissues of Abx-treated and control mice at P7, P14, P21, and P28 (n = 4 independent experiments, six mice per experiment in each group). d Heatmap of genes (top 25 differentially expressed genes) (Supplementary Table 6) involved in the proliferation, survival, and differentiation of macrophages in corneal tissues of Abx-treated and control mice at P28 (n = 3 independent experiments, six mice per experiment in each group). e Analysis of expression of Smad2, Smad3, and Tgfβr2 in flow-cytometry-sorted CCR2⁻ corneal macrophages (n = 3 independent experiments, ten mice per experiment in each group). f Investigation of expression of Tgf-β, Il-34, and Csf-1 in corneal tissues of control mice, Abx-treated mice, and Abx-treated mice with fecal transplant at P28 (n = 4 independent experiments, six mice per experiment in each group). The data are presented as mean ± SD. *Abx-treated mice vs control mice, ^†Abx-treated mice with fecal transplants vs Abx-treated mice, ^‡Abx-treated mice with fecal transplants vs control mice, *^,‡P < 0.05 and **^,‡‡P < 0.01, ***^,†††P < 0.001