Ruscogenin Ameliorated Sjögren’s Syndrome by Inhibiting NLRP3 Inflammasome Activation

Figure 1

Ruscogenin ameliorated the SFR and submandibular gland inflammation of NOD/ShiLtJ mice. (a) The chemical structure of Ruscogenin. (b) SFR was calculated using female mice treated with vehicle (sterile PBS) and Ruscogenin (0.3, 1 mg/kg) at weeks 11, 13, 15, 17, and 20. (c) Histological analysis of the submandibular glands in mice treated with vehicle and Ruscogenin (at 20 weeks of age) was conducted by hematoxylin-eosin staining assay. (d) Relative mRNA expression levels of IL-6, IL-17, TNF-α, and IL-1β in submandibular glands were detected through quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction. GAPDH is a loading control. , , vs. vehicle group. All experiments were repeated independently at least three times. Data were performed as the means ± standard deviation. SFR: salivary flow rate; PBS, phosphate buffer saline; IL: interleukin; TNF: tumor necrosis factor; qRT-PCR: quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction; GAPDH: glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase.

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