Fig. 3

Improved ARDS state following MSC administration vs placebo. a Amounts of norepinephrine (µg/kg/min) administered as inotropic support to support hemodynamic stability. b PaO₂/FiO₂ ratio was quantified at the time of confirmed ARDS and at the end-point for both groups. c Cell counts for white blood cells, lymphocytes and neutrophils were analysed. Statistical significance applies to direct comparison of the treated to the placebo group (mixed effects model Sidak’s multiple comparisons test). d Plasma cytokine levels monitored after the administration of treatment or placebo. e Bronchoalveolar lavage fluid (BALF) cytokine levels were tested at baseline and at the endpoint of the experiment. Statistically significant differences between groups were tested with two-sided Student’s T-test and within groups with ANOVA when data were normally distributed. The two-sided Mann–Whitney test and the Kruskal–Wallis test were used when data were not normally distributed. Multiple two-sided Mann–Whitney tests were used to compare the groups when data were not normally distributed. Mixed-effects analysis with Šídák’s multiple comparisons test was used to compare timepoints within each group, *p < 0.05, **p < 0.01, ***p < 0.001, ****p < 0.0001. Data are presented as mean ± standard deviation unless otherwise stated. Analyses were conducted on treated group (n = 6) and placebo group (n = 6)