Figure 1.
Treatment of MRL/lpr mice with brilliant blue G (BBG) suppresses the activation of the P2X7/NLRP3 pathway. A and B, Representative Western blot bands (top) and relative expression levels in each group (bottom) show the protein expression of P2X7, NLRP3, ASC, and caspase l-p20, normalized to the values for GAPDH, in the kidneys of 20-week-old MKL/lpr mice versus normal controls (age-matched normal MRL/MpJ mice) (n = 6 per group) (A), and the kidneys of BBG-treated MRL/lpr mice versus vehicle-treated controls (after 8 weeks of treatment; n = 10 per group) (B). C–E, Levels of interleukin-lβ (IL-lβ) were determined by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay in the kidneys of MRL/lpr mice versus normal controls (C), and the kidneys (D) and serum (E) of BBG-treated MRL/lpr mice versus vehicle-treated controls. Results are the mean ± SD. * = P < 0.01 versus normal controls; # = P < 0.01 versus vehicle-treated controls.