Expectorant Effects of Immature Asian Pear Extract on PM_2.5-Induced Subacute Pulmonary Injury in Mice

Table 4

Immunohistochemistrical stain-based histomorphometrical analysis of lung-left lobe tissue in intact or PM_2.5-treated pulmonary injured mice.

Groups	Items/regions
	Caspase-3 immunolabeled cells		COX-2 immunostained cells
	AR region	SB mucosa region	AR region	SB mucosa region
Controls
Intact vehicle	40.40 ± 12.89	11.20 ± 4.02	48.20 ± 14.71	19.60 ± 5.64
PM2.5	386.60 ± 77.52^a	274.60 ± 64.49^a	489.60 ± 114.10^a	164.60 ± 27.11^a
Reference-AM
250 mg/kg	147.20 ± 32.72^ab	74.40 ± 21.04^ab	216.60 ± 49.92^ab	67.00 ± 20.25^ab
Test substance-IAP
400 mg/kg	95.60 ± 16.43^ab	40.00 ± 11.16^ab	113.40 ± 26.70^ab	31.40 ± 12.37^b
200 mg/kg	143.60 ± 30.09^ab	74.20 ± 18.72^ab	215.20 ± 40.76^ab	69.40 ± 21.48^ab
100 mg/kg	203.60 ± 38.25^ab	185.40 ± 10.83^ac	307.60 ± 32.32^ab	104.00 ± 10.54^ab

Values are expressed mean ± SD of 10 mice; cells/mm²; PM_2.5 = diesel particulate matter NIST 1650b; AM = ambroxol hydrochloride; IAP = immature Asian pear (fruit of Pyrus pyrifolia Nakai cv. Shingo) extract; COX = cyclooxygenase; AR = alveolar septal; SB = secondary bronchus mucosa; DT3 = Dunnett’s T3; ^a as compared with intact vehicle control by DT3 test; ^b and ^c as compared with PM_2.5 control by DT3 test.