Fig. 3

Gender affects the severity of dermal fibrosis and inflammatory response. a Bleomycin-treated male Balb/C and male DBA/2 mice have slightly greater dermal thickness and b hydroxyproline content, compared to their female counterparts, however, this was not statistically significant. c Bleomycin-treated male DBA/2 mice have significantly higher myofibroblasts than their female counterparts. d Representative images of H&E-stained sections of male Balb/C, C57BL/6 and DBA/2 skin subjected to bleomycin (0.5 mg/ml) injections given every other day. e Relative number of inflammatory cells in the dermis of male Balb/C, C57BL/6 and DBA/2 mice in response to bleomycin injections. f Representative images of H&E-stained sections of skin subjected to bleomycin (0.5 mg/ml) injections given every other day in female Balb/C, C57BL/6 and DBA/2 mice. g Relative number of inflammatory cells in the dermis of female Balb/C, C57BL/6 and DBA/2 mice in response to bleomycin injections. Original magnification ×630. All values represent means ± standard error of the mean; n = 6 in each group. n.s. not significant