Fig. 1: LTBP4 expression is associated with tubulointerstitial fibrosis in mouse and human kidneys.

A–F Wild-type mice were subjected to tubulointerstitial fibrosis by unilateral ureteral obstruction (UUO) for the indicated time points. A Representative histological images with Masson’s trichrome and immunofluorescence staining of kidneys after UUO. Scale bars, 100 μm. Computer-assisted quantitative analyses of histological images for Ltbp4 (B), Masson’s trichrome (Masson) (C), Fibronectin (FBN) (D), and α-SMA (E) are shown. F Protein expression of Ltbp4, collagen I, fibronectin, and vimentin in the kidneys of mice subjected to UUO, as detected by immunoblotting. GAPDH served as an internal control. Representative images from three independent experiments are shown above. n = 2 mice in 0-day group; n = 4 mice in 5- and 14-day groups. G Representative immunohistochemical images showing that LTBP4 was predominantly expressed in the kidneys of a patient with diabetic nephropathy compared to a normal control individual. Scale bars: 1 mm in ×40 and 100 μm in ×400 magnifications. Representative images from three independent experiments are shown above. (H) LTBP4 was upregulated in fibrotic kidneys, which was analysed in microarray data set: ArrayExpress_E-MTAB-2502. Normal: health individual; CKD: chronic kidney disease. Data are presented as the mean ± SEM. *p < 0.05, **p < 0.01.