Lymphangiogenesis in renal fibrosis arises from macrophages via VEGF-C/VEGFR3-dependent autophagy and polarization

摘要

A Kidney tissue from sham-operated (Sham) or unilateral ureteral obstruction (UUO) mice was tested by Masson staining (100×) and immunohistochemical analysis of α-SMA, F4/80, VEGF-C, and LYVE-1 (400×). There was a positive correlation between the number of LYVE-1+ vessels and the positive area (%) of α-SMA (B), F4/80 (C), and VEGF-C (D). E Protein expression of fibrosis markers (α-SMA, collagen 1, and PDGFR-β) and lymphangiogenesis markers (LYVE-1, Prox-1, and VEGF-C) in Sham and UUO mouse kidneys were measured by western blotting. F Quantitative analysis of the results in (E) was conducted to show the protein expression of fibrosis markers (α-SMA, collagen 1, and PDGFR-β) and lymphangiogenesis markers (LYVE-1, Prox-1, and VEGF-C) in Sham and UUO mouse kidneys. *p < 0.05, **p < 0.01 versus the Sham group. G–L Relative mRNA expression of Collagen 1 (G), α-SMA (H), PDGFR-β (I), Prox-1 (J), VEGF-C (K), and LYVE-1 (L) in Sham and UUO mouse kidneys was measured by real-time PCR; *p < 0.05, **p < 0.01 versus the Sham group. N = 6/group.