Fig. 7
Strain-dependent expression of fibrotic markers in ectopic lesions and translational relevance to human endometriosis. (A, E) Control tissues exhibited negligible immunohistochemical staining for α-SMA, Nestin, and Cytokeratin (quantified as low percentages). (B, E) C57BL/6J ectopic lesions displayed the most pronounced fibrotic profile, characterized by the highest percentages of α-SMA, Nestin, and Cytokeratin positive cells. (C, E) BALB/c lesions showed intermediate expression levels of these markers, while (D, E) Swiss albino lesions exhibited the lowest expression. Data are presented as the percentage of positively stained cells across the tissue field. (E) Comparative IHC analysis of Cytokeratin, Vimentin, and Nestin in ectopic lesions from the mouse model and human endometriosis samples revealed similar patterns of marker localization and staining intensity, supporting the model’s translational significance. (DAB brown, Hematoxylin blue counterstain; Magnification: 40x, 100x, 1000x). (F) Percentage of positively stained cells for all three markers (α-SMA: 17.41%, Nestin: 8.28%, Cytokeratin: 10.08%.
