Efficacy of Ethanol Extract of Fructus lycii and Its Constituents Lutein/Zeaxanthin in Protecting Retinal Pigment Epithelium Cells against Oxidative Stress: In Vivo and In Vitro Models of Age-Related Macular Degeneration

Figure 2

Effects of Fructus lycii ethanol extract on cathepsin B expression in mice with an experimental model of AMD. Mice were grouped: group 1, aging control group (no high-fat diet plus hydroquinone, no treatment); group 2, AMD model group (with high-fat diet plus hydroquinone, no treatment); group 3, low dose group (with high-fat diet plus hydroquinone, 1.25 g/kg treatment); group 4, moderate dose group (with high-fat diet plus hydroquinone, 2.50 g/kg treatment); and group 5, high dose group (with high-fat diet plus hydroquinone, 3.75 g/kg treatment). (a) Real-time PCR analysis for transcript level of cathepsin B. GAPDH was used as the invariant control for calculating fold changes in mRNA levels (𝑛=10). Data are expressed as mean ± SD, ^##𝑃<0.01 versus group 1, *𝑃<0.05 versus group 2, and **𝑃<0.01 versus group 2. (b) Western blot analysis for protein level of cathepsin B. β-Actin was used as an invariant control for equal loading. Representative blots were from 10 independent experiments with quantification. Data are expressed as mean ± SD, ^#𝑃<0.05 versus group 1, and *𝑃<0.05 versus group 2. (c) Immunohistochemical staining of the eye tissues for cathepsin B was detected in different groups (magnification ×25000). Normal young mice (3 months old) were used as negative control. The retina and chorioid are indicated.