Figure 6
ECP-DL infusion led to an increased accumulation of MerTK-expressing macrophages in allografts. BALB/c to B6 cardiac transplants were performed; animals received ECP-DL on day -7 or no therapy and were sacrificed on POD12. Grafts were harvested and infiltrating cells were subjected to flow cytometry. (a, b) Representative flow cytometric plots (gated from H2Db+CD11b+ live single cells) with corresponding bar graphs demonstrating higher percentage of MerTK+ macrophages in the ECP-DL compared to the untreated group (n = 3/group). *p < 0.05 by student t-test. (c, d) Representative histogram (gated from Ly6ClowMerTK+ population) and corresponding bar graphs, demonstrating the graft-infiltrating MerTK+ macrophages had a significant phenotypic difference between the ECP-DL and untreated group. Expression levels of CD80, CXCR1, and CCR2 in MerTK+ cells from the ECP-DL group were all significantly lower than those from the untreated group, indicating ECP-DL promotes anti-inflammatory and pro-reparative infiltrates in the allografts. MFI: Mean fluorescence intensity; **p < 0.01 by student t-test.
