Multiomics reveal human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells improving acute lung injury via the lung-gut axis

Figure 3 Human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells improve histopathology, inflammation, and endothelial barrier integrity of the ileum in acute lung injury mice. A: Ileum tissue injury in acute lung injury (ALI) mice was observed after hematoxylin-eosin staining. ALI mice had severe ileum tissue injury while human umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cell (HUC-MSC) treatment improved such injury (n = 3); B: Tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, interleukin (IL)-1β, IL-6, and lipopolysaccharide (LPS) levels in the ileum were measured by ELISA (n = 12), and ALI mice had higher levels of TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-6, and LPS compared to sham mice, while HUC-MSC treatment decreased the levels of these factors; C: Zonula occludens-1 (ZO-1), claudin-1, and occludin levels were measured to observe the integrity of the ileum barrier (n = 3); D: Representative western blot bands of ZO-1, claudin-1, and occludin; E-H: Bacterial translocation was determined by fluorescence in situ hybridization, and the EUB338 counts in the ileum epithelium and lung per field were quantified (n = 3). ^aP < 0.05, ^bP < 0.01. MSC: Mesenchymal stem cell; LPS: Lipopolysaccharide; ZO-1: Zonula occludens-1; HE: Hematoxylin-eosin; IL: Interleukin; TNF: Tumor necrosis factor.