Fig. 6

Comparison of the activation of fibroblasts of the left lung in rats with PF. Left lung sections were obtained from the Normal, BLM, BLM + Nintedanib, BLM + Pirfenidone, and BLM + HUMSCs groups on day 49 and were labeled with anti-α-SMA antibody to indicate activated fibroblasts in the left lungs of each study group. From low to high magnifications, a large number of activated fibroblasts appeared in the connective tissues in the BLM, BLM + Nintedanib, and BLM + Pirfenidone groups (a, b). Furthermore, Western blot was applied to quantify the α-SMA level in the left lung. The results indicated that activated fibroblasts significantly reduced after transplantation of HUMSCs compared to those in other treatment groups (c). The cell number in bronchoalveolar lavage was quantified on day 49, which revealed that the cell counts remained higher in the BLM group compared to those in other treatment groups (d). n = 3 or 4 in each group. ✽: vs the Normal group, p < 0.05. ♦: vs the BLM + HUMSCs group, p < 0.05. #: vs the BLM group, p < 0.0001