Research Article

Ursodeoxycholic Acid Attenuates Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress-Related Retinal Pericyte Loss in Streptozotocin-Induced Diabetic Mice

Figure 2

Effect of UDCA on pericyte loss in STZ-induced diabetic mice. (a) Representative images of FITC staining in control, nontreated diabetic, and UDCA-treated diabetic mice. Original magnification: ×200; scale bar: 500 μm. (b) Capillary density was lower in nontreated diabetic mice, while no differences were observed between UDCA-treated diabetic and control mice. Fifteen measures of capillary density were averaged for each retina from control (), nontreated diabetic mice (), and UDCA-treated diabetic mice (). < 0.001 versus control mice, < 0.005 versus nontreated diabetic mice. (c) Representative images of PDGFR-β staining for retinal pericytes in control, nontreated diabetic and UDCA-treated diabetic mice. Original magnification: ×200; scale bar: 200 μm. (d) The number of pericytes was lower in nontreated diabetic mice while no differences between UDCA-treated diabetic and control mice were evident. Measurements of pericyte number were averaged for each retina from control (), nontreated diabetic mice (), and UDCA-treated diabetic mice (). CTL: control mice, DM: nontreated diabetic mice, and +UDCA: diabetic mice treated with UDCA, < 0.001 versus control mice.
(a)
(b)
(c)
(d)