Figure 4

Pharmaceutically blocking pulmonary epithelial cell apoptosis attenuates Pasteurella multocida infection. A A scheme showing the Ac-DEVD-CHO (CHO) treatment protocol. B Representative images of PmCQ2-infected murine lungs with or without CHO treatment. At the bottom are survival curves of PmCQ2-infected mice with or without CHO treatment. Each group was composed of 8 mice. C Representative images of H&E staining of PmCQ2-infected murine lungs with or without CHO treatment at 24 hpi. Scale bar = 200 μm. D Representative images of TUNEL staining of PmCQ2-infected murine lungs with or without CHO treatment at 24 hpi. Scale bar = 200 μm. On the right, quantification of TUNEL-positive cells in 3 random sections is shown. The data are presented as the means ± SDs. E Bacterial load in the blood, liver, and kidney of PmCQ2-infected mice with or without CHO treatment. N = 8. The data are presented as the means ± SDs. F Quantification of plasma BUN and creatinine (CREA) and serum AST and ALT levels in PmCQ2-infected mice with or without CHO treatment at 24 hpi. N (con) = 5, N (PmCQ2) = 8, N (PmCQ2 + CHO) = 8. The data are presented as the means ± SDs. G Quantification of IL-6, TNF-α, and IL-1β levels in the liver and kidney of PmCQ2-infected mice with or without CHO treatment at 24 hpi by ELISA. N = 5. The data are presented as the means ± SDs. H Quantification of IL-6, TNF-α, and IL-1β levels in the serum of PmCQ2-infected mice with or without CHO treatment at 24 hpi by ELISA. Every single point represents one individual. * p < 0.05, ** p < 0.01, *** p < 0.001. N (IL-6) = 7, N (TNF-α) = 5, N (IL-1β) = 6. The data are presented as the means ± SDs.