Fig. 4

MIR29A mice developed liver injury and fibrosis less readily during schistosome infection. MIR29A mice and WT mice were infected percutaneously with 16 Schistosoma japonicum cercariae or remained uninfected. Liver and spleen samples were harvested at 10 weeks post-infection. A Macrograph of livers and spleens from MIR29A mice and WT mice in both the uninfected and infected groups. Scale bar, 1 cm. H&E, Masson's trichrome and Sirius Red staining of liver sections and immunohistochemical staining for collagen I and α-SMA. Scale bar, 50 μm. B, C Liver and spleen indices were determined (n = 7). D, E Serum ALT and AST levels were measured (n = 7). F Collagen content in livers determined as the hydroxyproline content (n = 7). G Fibrosis scores measured from Masson's trichrome staining of liver sections (n = 7). H Areas positive for Sirius Red staining were measured using IPP software (n = 7). I Granuloma size was measured from H&E-stained liver sections (n = 7). J–M The expression of Col1α1, Col3α1, α-SMA, and TGF-β1 in livers during infection was detected by qPCR (n = 7). Data are presented as the mean ± SD of three independent experiments. Multiple comparisons were performed by one-way ANOVA with Tukey’s correction for comparisons between two groups (B-M). **P < 0.01, ***P < 0.001, ****P < 0.0001, compared with infected WT samples. miR-29a-3p: microRNA-29a-3p; Robo1: Roundabout homolog 1; ALT: alanine aminotransferase; AST: aspartate aminotransferase