Fig. 3

AREG deficiency attenuates intestinal fibrosis. (A-F) WT and Areg^−/− mice were treated with 1.5% DSS in the drinking water for 7 days and then with drinking water alone, and the above process was repeated three times. Mice were killed after a total of 3 cycles of DSS treatment (n = 9/group). (A) Disease severity was measured by histopathology and pathological scores. Scale bars, 200 μm. (B) Il1b, Il6, and Tnf levels in colonic tissues were measured by qRT-PCR. (C) Colon tissues were stained with Masson’s trichrome. (D) Col1a1, Col6a1 and Col6a3 levels in colonic tissues were measured by qRT-PCR. (E) α-SMA expression in colon tissues from WT and Areg^−/− mice was determined by western blot. (F) Colon tissues were stained with immunofluorescence. α-SMA layer thickness were analyzed. Representative data from 2 independent experiments with similar results. (A-F) Unpaired Student’s t-test. ^**P < 0.01; ^***P < 0.001; ns: not significant