IKK Epsilon Deficiency Attenuates Angiotensin II-Induced Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm Formation in Mice by Inhibiting Inflammation, Oxidative Stress, and Apoptosis

Figure 3

IKKε deficiency attenuates MMP production. Double staining for (a) MMP 2 red and α-SMA green or (b) MMP9 red and α-SMA green in aortic sections from mice in the indicated groups after 4 weeks of infusion. Nuclei were counterstained with DAPI blue. Quantification is shown in the right panel, , respectively. (c) MMP expression in abdominal aortic protein lysates by ELISA, , respectively. (d) MMP activity in abdominal aortic protein lysates by gelatin zymography. Quantification is shown in the right panel, , respectively. (e) The fresh-frozen sections were analyzed by in situ zymography with DQ gelatin to detect the gelatinolytic activity of MMPs. Quantification is shown in the right panel. , respectively. vs. Apoe^−/−IKKε^−/− mice. vs. Apoe^−/−IKKε^−/− mice. vs. Apoe^−/−IKKε^−/− mice.

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