Fig. 2

Exogenous pEPC injection ameliorated renal fibrosis. a Experimental scheme: UUO day 5 kidneys were harvested. pEPCs were injected at 24-, 48- and 72-h post-surgery. b–f PAS staining was used to observe tubular morphological changes: tubular brush border, dilation and cast formation. Masson trichrome (green) and Sirius red (red) staining and IHC staining for Collagen IV (brown) were used to evaluate extracellular matrix deposition in the renal interstitium. g IHC and IF to detect α-SMA was employed to identify myofibroblasts after UUO. h, i Western blotting and qRT-PCR were performed to measure α-SMA protein and RNA expression levels. The data are presented as the mean ± SD; n = 5/group. *p < 0.05; **p < 0.005; ***p < 0.001. Scale bar, 20 μm