Fig. 4

The effect of the ST2-Fc fusion protein on established BLM-induced pulmonary fibrosis. Saline or bleomycin (BLM) treated mice were dosed intraperitonially (i.p) with 10 mg/kg of either isotype control or ST2-Fc fusion protein every 72 h from day 14–28 (A). Hydroxyproline (Hyp.) content was measured in lung homogenates (B). Bars indicate mean values and each data point represents a single mouse. n = 6–8 per treatment group and statistical analysis was performed by Two-way ANOVA with Tukey’s multiple comparisons test. Immunohistochemical staining of lung sections with H&E, Sirius red and Masson’s trichrome were performed with representative, low magnification (× 10) images of stained lung tissue sections shown (C). The severity of BLM-induced fibrosis was quantified by Ashcroft scoring with the scores for H&E, Trichrome and Sirius Red stained sections shown in black, grey and white respectively (D). Bars indicate median values and each mouse is represented by 3 data points (one for each stain). n = 2–4 per treatment group. Statistical analysis was performed by Mann–Whitney U test