Fig. 7

pEPC-MVs reduced pericyte–myofibroblast transition in vivo. a Representative electron microscopic image showing pEPC-MVs (red arrows) to be approximately 200 nm in diameter. b pEPCs-MV injection significantly reduced α-SMA and PDGFR-β protein expression levels after UUO surgery. c, d Co-staining for α-SMA (green) and PDGFR-β (red) showed that UUO led to extensive pericyte–myofibroblast transition (yellow) in the renal interstitium. After pEPCs-MV treatment, the co-expression of α-SMA and PDGFR-β became sparser. e, f G2/M arrest in epithelial cells was evaluated by IF staining for PH3 (red), which showed that the number of TECs at G2/M arrest decreased after treatment with pEPC-MVs. The data are presented as the mean ± SD; n = 3–4/group. *p < 0.05