Figure 6
From: Exosomes Cause Preterm Birth in Mice: Evidence for Paracrine Signaling in Pregnancy
Exosomes injected into pregnant mice induce labor-associated changes in the cervix. (A–C) Western blot analysis and densitometry quantitation show a significant increase in the activation of the inflammatory signalers NF-κB (as determined RelA phosphorylation) and COX-2 in E18 exosome-injected mice compared to PBS- and E9 exosome-injected mice. Inflammatory cytokines IL-6 and TNF-α were significantly increased in E18 exosome-injected mice compared to PBS- and E9 exosome-injected mice. Full-length blots are presented in Supplemental Fig. 3. (D,E) Histology showing that macrophage activation marker F4/80 was significantly increased in E18 exosome injected mouse cervix compared to E9 and PBS control injected mice. Nuclei were stained green by methyl green and macrophages were stained brown. For a semi-quantitative estimation of macrophage activation, total cells and macrophages were counted to determine macrophage to total cell ratio (bar graph).
